Not a Wrinkle, But a Tear
by Joey Destructo
Summary: When the flow of time is disrupted, it's up to Ranma and the gang to fix it. However, things are not what they seem, and friends will appear in unlooked for places. Crossover wReal Bout HS and Tales of Symphonia. R&R. Continued in my story Stuck on You.
1. Not a Wrinkle But a Tear

Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2, Tales of Symphonia, Real Bout High School, Halo, or anything I've referred to that can be proven is owned by someone else. I simply write stories about them for entertainment.

**Important note from the author: **Ah, it's been a long road, but it's finally done! However, there are a few things you must understand. This story is written with only the first twenty-six Ranma 1/2 graphic novels and the first five Real Bout G. R.s under my belt, so if I write something that conflicts with the G. R.s I haven't read, please tell me where and why, and what I can do to fix it. However, I did finish Tales of Symphonia, so the only thing you need to know is that this story is based on the assumption that you talked to Sheena at Flanoir and Heimdall, meaning Zelos does not die, and Lloyd goes on the journey to collect the Exspheres with Sheena. You may now safely read the story. The rest of this is just my ranting, so read on, or skip ahead to the story.

This story actually started when I was mowing the lawn, and I was thinking about sayings, and I happened to think of "Time heals all wounds," and I thought, what if time got a wound? It just progressed from there. I write differently than most people. Instead of planning out the whole story and fleshing it out, and writing several drafts, I just get ideas, and connect them together. I usually will never reach a block, but run out of energy first. As a result, I stop, and in between I get new ideas, and then I finish up my last thought an connect it to the next somehow. Sometimes, the idea will be a plot twist, an act made by a character, or even just one line. With the way I write, it's as much fun writing the story as it is reading for other people (assuming you like it).

A major problem I ran into was synonyms, especially for the words "group/party" and "beast/monster". So you will likely run across these several times. Please excuse them, and report any spelling or grammar errors to me.

A bad tendency I have is to include any thing I like in my stories, even if I just started learning about it. Example: I started reading Oh My Goddess! partway through writing the story, and immediately I wanted to write in a part with some elements from OMG!. However, I stopped myself, and avoided getting in even more trouble.

Well, that's about it. So, read and review, please, and, uh, enjoy!

**Not a Wrinkle But a Tear**

**There came into existence a saying.**

**Time heals all wounds.**

**And thus it seemed.**

**But now arises the question:**

**Can Time heal itself?**

**It does not seem so.**

**Tokyo, Japan**

**An unknown time**

As he sat in the dark, watching the embers of life slowly fade from the body on the bed, Mortimer felt his hopes dwindle. The young man was nearly dead. Only a week, at most, and the world's last hope would die with his body. There could be only one way to save the lad, and he could not do it alone. Mortimer's pipe sent out a puff of smoke and went out. Again he was reminded of how short a time he had. Rising from his seat and casting the pipe onto its stand on the shelf, Mortimer blew out a breath and looked over at the woman. She sat close to the man and stroked his hand gently. She looked up at him when he stood up. "What are we going to do?" she asked softly, her eyes wrought with worry. "I," said Mortimer, "am going to round up Ranma's friends. They will all have to work together if he is to be saved. And you, Mrs. Akane Saotome," he said, pointing his finger at her, "You are going to stay right here. Your most important job is to watch him. Give him a shot of that medicine if he starts to look worse."

As he opened the door, he remembered something and turned back around. He produced a two-way radio out of the folds of his robe. "I will have this if you need me," he said, and tossed the other one at her. She caught it and turned it on. "Godspeed," she said, and Mortimer left.

**Hokkaido**

Mortimer stepped off the transport and walked down the street. The days were getting darker. It was twilight all the time. Mortimer drew in his coat around him and fingered his weapon underneath it. Since the coming of the Darkness and Plague, people had become scared, confused, and desperate. There was no telling how someone would act. However, although there was no government, man managed to maintain a way of life, although poor and squalid. It was amazing how much crime had actually decreased. Maybe it was the feeling of impending doom that bound everyone together. Maybe it was the discovery of how everyone was the same. Whatever the case, people knew the end was near for them all, in one way or another, and they gave each other the longest they could have.

But still, that didn't stop some. The Plague had already wiped out a third of the world's population, and more every day, though drastically less than during the initial epidemic. Things had leveled out now, mostly. But, one disturbing aspect was that those who did not die from it went mad, becoming unpredictable and aggressive. You could not tell if one had been affected in this way, and that is what made it so deadly. Ranma had now fallen prey to it, but it was the malignant type, and he could not survive on his own. Only through the combined talents of his friends could he survive.

Mortimer came to the building he was looking for. He knocked on it, and glanced around, surveying the scene as he waited anxiously for a reply. It was not late in coming. "Who there?" came an angry voice. "I come on behalf of Ranma Saotome," replied Mortimer. After a moment of silence there came the sound of deadbolts flying and the door flung open. "You say _Ranma?_" exclaimed a young woman, her eyes wide with excitement. Mortimer nodded with a smile. "Aiyaa! Come in! Come in!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him inside.

Mortimer sipped his tea. "What news you have of Ranma?" asked Shampoo as she refilled his cup. Mortimer frowned. "Not good, I'm afraid," he said. "Ranma is dying." Shampoo set the pot down. "You say dying?!" exclaimed Shampoo. "Yes, I'm afraid so," replied Mortimer. "That is why I have come. There is a way to save him, but I need all of his friends special talents. Shampoo, since the passing of your great-grandmother, I require your knowledge of Chinese medicine and herbal remedies." Shampoo nodded. "We do anything for Ranma," she said firmly. Mousse came up behind her and rested a hand on her shoulder. "My wife is right," he said. "We will gladly lend any aid to our dear friend. But I am not sure what I may do for him." Mortimer stood. "Your part will come later," he said. "Ranma will need help even after he fully recovers, for he will have a dangerous mission ahead of him. If he recovers, that is." Mousse slung a pack over his shoulder and pushed his glasses up on his nose. He peered at the old man. "When he recovers," said Mousse.

Akane read an old magazine to pass the time for a while. The date on it felt like last year to her, but the condition of it said last century. The yellowed sheets of paper crinkled and tore when she turned the pages. She read about the war in Iraq, the introduction of a new soft drink called Pepsi Edge, the progress on ISS and space program, and about a movie where aliens fought each other. She had read it many times, and she knew exactly what it would say, and so she finally gave up reading it and set it down. She looked at her husband on the bed. Only a week after the Darkness came, they decided they would have to get married, for fear they might not get the chance later.

Now it seemed he would die after only a few months in wedlock. She stroked his hand again. His eyes fluttered open. "Hey," she said softly, and leaned forward. "How are you feeling?" Ranma made a weak attempt at a smile. "I've had worse," he whispered. "What year is it?" The smile fell from her face. "I-I don't know," she replied. "Nobody knows, Ranma. We have to save you, so you can get things back to normal." Ranma tried the smile again. It half-worked. "You think I could do that?" he asked. "I know you can do that," she said as she squeezed his hand reassuringly. "If you say so, then I guess I have to..." He trailed off, and fell back asleep. Akane smiled sadly. He did not look any better than before. But then, at least he didn't look any worse.

**Atami**

With the travels of but three days, Mortimer had found everybody required to save the life of Ranma. Save one, that is.

Ryoga downed his stiff Scotch and set the glass down. A man slipped into the chair across from him. Ryoga's eyes glanced lazily up from his lap. The man did not speak. "Do I know you?" he said, his speech slightly slurred. "No," said the man. "But I come on the behalf of one you do know." "And who ish that?" asked Ryoga. "Ranma," said Mortimer. Ryoga's inebriation quickly passed. Rivaling emotions struggled for dominance of Ryoga's mind. "What does he want?" Ryoga asked cautiously. "He's dying," said Mortimer. "And if he does not survive, there is no way the world can ever be right again."

"How do you mean?" asked Ryoga. "Time is wounded," replied Mortimer gravely. "We are in the center of that wound, and there is only one who can heal it, and that is Ranma. But he cannot do it alone. He needs first to survive, and then he needs help to accomplish the healing process. He can't do either of those without you, or the others I have gathered." Ryoga thought about the man who had made him the great fighter he was, the man who had stolen his Akane, and the man who had always been there for him when he needed help. But one thing still confused him. "What will happen if he heals time?" asked Ryoga. "The rift was created in the year 2004, around November," said Mortimer. "If Ranma can seal it again, Time will return to normal, and will resume its course, but likely will resume from a slightly earlier point. And, as in a human, a scar will be formed, preventing a similar occurance from happening again." _Earlier?_ thought Ryoga. _Then perhaps Akane will be mine!_ A wave of joy crested over him, but he was careful not to show it.

"Can I have a minute to think?" he said. Mortimer nodded, and Ryoga walked to a back restroom. _Oh Akane, you will be mine!_ thought Ryoga. Another thought struck him. _But wait! What about Ranma? _He could just see Ranma's indomitable, crushing sadness obliterate his life. Ryoga bit his lip. _I was only thinking of me,_ he realized. _How could I think like that? I can't! _His shoulders dropped and he sighed, closing his eyes. But, the world....

Yes, the world was in a dire state. He could not ignore its extreme convalescence, nor Ranma's. He had to help him, not for his own desires, but for Ranma, his friend, and for the world. _In this way, the fate of the world does not rest only upon him, but upon me, and everyone else this guy had found._ He opened his eyes. A wall of resolve made him stand up straight. He clenched his fist. _The world is counting on me, and I'm sure as hell not gonna let them down! If nothing else, I'll prove to Akane that I am a man, and not an ungrateful sniveling coward. _

He went back to the table and leaned across it. "Count me in," said Ryoga. The man smiled. "Excellent," he said, and they went outside.

"AKS, AKS, do you copy? This MOT. Repeat, this is MOT." Akane grabbed the radio and hit the talk button. "This is AKS," replied Akane. "I read you loud and clear, MOT. Proceed with message. Over." There was a crackle of static, and Mortimer's voice returned. "Take record. RCM complete. Requesting a make-ready. Total is _elf_. All we had hoped for. ETA two hours. Will meet at portcullis. Wait for signal to open. IMP: RAS is reaching critical stages. Do what you can, but do not leave RAS for more than thirty minutes at a time. There is plenty of XO in the top of the PK, should it be required. Over and out."

Akane wrote it all down: Mortimer had finished his recon mission and had gathered all eleven people he had searched for, and they would be arriving in a couple of hours. He wanted her to prepare for the guests and meet him at the back entrance to the apartment building, and to listen for his ID signal to open the door. Ranma's disease is getting worse, so he should not be left alone for more than one half hour. Ranma's medicine was in the top of the kitchen pantry.

She finished the note and went to go make dinner.

"Let's all get reacquainted," said Mortimer. The group had arrived at the home of Ranma and Akane Saotome, and was in the middle of eating supper. He gestured to his right, at a young girl with an oversized spatula. "This is Ukyo Kuonji. Her cooking skills and training have given her an invaluable knowledge of edible and inedible items, which will useful on Ranma's journey." She nodded at the group. "To her left we have Tatewaki Kuno and Kodachi, his sister. His swordsmanship and her use and knowledge of poisons will likewise be beneficial on the trip." They waved shyly at everyone. "Next we have Shampoo and her husband, Mousse. Their unique and fused fighting styles will be helpful, as well as Shampoo's knowledge of Chinese herbal remedies passed down by her great-grandmother. Next we have Herb and his companions, Mint and Lime. Herb was the one who nearly killed Ranma after he was already quite powerful. His skills with the use of ki will be valuable, as well as Mint's strength, and Lime's agility." Herb said nothing. "Next, Hinako Ninomiya. Her fighting style is of good use, and her rare aura-draining ability can also be reversed to impart her, and others', strength to Ranma, as his own power has waned in his sickness." She smiled and waved. "We come to Ryoga Hibiki. His close companionship with Ranma has given him a good sense of how to play off Ranma's moves to be effective. He also has the ability to turn heavy emotions into usable energy, and I can guarantee Ranma will not survive unless he shakes off the almost immovable depression that has settled on him recently."

Ryoga did nothing, but inwardly he realized why he had been one of the ones called. If such a heavy ki had fallen upon him, he knew from experience that Ranma might not be able to take it off alone. Mortimer continued. "Next we have, um, Taro." The man whom Mortimer gestured seemed pleased by this. "His brute strength will come in handy more than once. Lastly we have Shinnosuke. His mastery of the unique healing waters of the Higo Forest will certainly help Ranma recover." Shinnosuke wore many bandages, but managed a smile. "Now then," said Mortimer, "I suggest we get to work."

Together Ukyo, Kodachi, and Shampoo compiled a book of foods, poisons, and herbs that would useful and would be found on their journey. After Akane acquired some supplies, Shampoo concocted a health potion, which was promptly given to Ranma. Afterwards, with a little help from Akane, Shinnosuke prepared a bath of healing water for Ranma. Then, after a good soak, he had Ranma drink some of the water of Higo, including a bit of the rare Moss of Life itself. Finally, gathering the energy of the entire team, Hinako siphoned the power through herself into Ranma. The group, drained, fell to the floor. Akane struggled to prop herself up on one elbow. She looked over at Ranma. He appeared indifferent to everything. "Now what?" she whispered to Mortimer. "Now," he said, "we wait."

Later on that evening, the group sat around the living room talking nervously amongst themselves. Murmurs about the concerns of Ranma and the fate of the world drifted through the strangely sweet air. Mortimer entered into the room. "Um, hello," he said, equally nervous. He had something to say, but he didn't know exactly how to say it. He would just have to tell them. He rolled his hat in his hands and began. "I have something to say, but I don't know exactly how to say it, so I'm just going to tell you. As you know, if Ranma recovers, tomorrow you will begin your journey. There will be no time during it to do anything else, and once he completes it, you will be back in the proper time and not remember any of this. If he does not recover, then the world is doomed anyhow. So I'm just going to say this once. This being the last night before the beginning of the saving or destruction of the world, and that meaning there will be no other good time for it, none will be judged in any way should any or all of you choose to take any sort of, um, ahem, shall we say, lascivious action."

His stony face not betraying any of the firey embarrassment he felt, Mortimer walked out of the room mechanically. For a long time the entire group did the opposite of what Mortimer did: they said nothing, and they all blushed bright red. Finally Mint and Lime whispered something into Herb's ears. He sighed. "Fine," he growled, and grabbed a pail of cold water. "But I won't like it." He stormed off to a back room with Mint and Lime followly eagerly. Perhaps it was the desire to not hear anything of what they all knew was going to occur that prompted them. Or maybe it was Mint and Lime's boldness that spurred them on. Whatever it was, they all got up and loudly began to make their own arrangements. Then they went to their rooms, and that was that.

Mortimer blew out a puff of smoke into the cool night air. He liked coming to the top of the building, especially when he wanted to either think deeply about something, or not think about something at all. Tonight he was doing a lot of both. The door to the roof shut softly far behind him. He glanced back. Ukyo walked up about three feet behind him. "May I join you?" she asked. He indicated she could. She lit up a stubby cigar and walked up next to him, resting her arms on the tall concrete barrier. "I was not aware you smoked," said Mortimer, slightly surprised. "I didn't," she said. "Not until a while ago. I had already concluded the world was going to end soon, when you found me. Then you told me what would happen if Ranma succeeded, and so I thought, you know, why not?" Mortimer harrumphed. "Indeed," he said after a moment. "But if you use that sort of reasoning, why did you decide not to engage in tonight's, ah, you know?" She grinned. "Who says I didn't?" she said. "I'm a one time a night person, and some g-" She interrupted herself. "People," she corrected, "get the job done fast." Mortimer knew there could have been a lot of things she was going to say that started with that letter, but he let it go at that. He was not one to pry, and he did say after all that no one was to be judged. Still...

"Anyone in particular?" he asked Ukyo with a small smile. She puffed on her cigar, and it went out. As she patted herself to look for a light, she said, "Uh, it's um, uh, well, ah." Mortimer waited. "Ryoga," she said in a small voice. Mortimer nodded slowly. He suspected as much. "And, uh, maybe Akane, too..." she said nervously. He handed her a Zippo and she took it gratefully. Even in the darkness he could see her rose cheeks, and he didn't want to humiliate her even more by making her fumble continually. He turned back to watching the undead city.

Mortimer's a nice guy, thought Ukyo, and lit another cigar.

Mortimer knocked softly on each of the bedroom doors, knowing all would be waiting for it. He did not want to intrude in on them, especially in light of things he knew some might well rather keep to themselves. As he went into the kitchen to preapre breakfast, a tap on the shoulder made him turn. It was Ukyo again. "Need some help?" she asked. Mortimer smiled. "It would be greatly appreciated," he said. "After all, that's why you're here." She smiled back. Mortimer nodded towards the kitchen. "Let's get started, shall we?"

In the bedrooms everyone prepared for the journey ahead of them, packing only what they needed, and what they could carry easily, which was sometimes less than what they needed. Akane absently brushed her hair in front of a mirror. She was not embarrassed by anything she had done with anyone last night, but she was afraid of what Ranma would think if he found out. She knew no one else would tell, and so, then and there, she decided she would not tell either. No, she was not embarrassed at all. She was completely cool and collected. The others, however, were a different story. Especially Ryoga. It took him several hours before he could even look at anyone without blushing, especially not Shampoo, Ukyo, or Akane.

After everyone had eaten breakfast, Mortimer rose from his seat to speak. "Today you embark on what will be perhaps the most important journey of your lives, and of the world," he said somberly. "There is only a slim chance you will succeed, and even if you do, there will be no recognition of your great deeds. But even so, before you accomplish your mission, you have the knowledge that your success will ensure a better world than this. Our world may not have been wonderful, but it's certainly better than this." He spread his arms wide, encircling the globe, taking everything into account. A great look of sadness came into his eyes, and he lowered his arms and closed his eyes.

When he opened them again, there was a fierce blaze burning in them. "I will now give you a book," he said. He picked a leather bound notebook up off the floor and handed it to Akane. "It contains everything I have managed to learn about what your mission entails. It's not much, but it should get you where you're going. If nothing else, you can sure put up one hard fight." He stood up straight, something no one had seen him really do before. He put his hand to his head in a salute. There was something about him that compelled them to salute back. He smiled. "Give 'em hell, soldiers."


	2. Reclamation

Reclamation

Ryoga huffed as he carried Ranma up the steep hill. Upon reaching the top, he set him in a sitting position against a dead tree. Ranma had not made a single responsive move since the beginning of the journey, two days ago. All he did was open his eyes partially, blink, and close his eyes again. "Why can't I release his depression now?" asked Ryoga, exhausted and doubled over.

"Because," said Mousse, pushing his glasses up on his nose, "according to this map Mortimer provided us, we will face, in less than a day, a three hundred foot tall, fifty foot thick steel wall blocking our way to wherever we're going." Ryoga shook his head and swore. He stood up straight and winced with pain as he stretched. "Let's get going then," he sighed, and picked up Ranma.

"_That's _it?" Mousse looked at Ryoga, who stared up at the giant wall that loomed in front of them. "I'm afraid so," he said gloomily. "How did we miss that?" asked Shinnosuke from the rear. Herb held up a torch they had lit at the onset of night and walked towards it. He examined its surface closely. "It's painted black," he said. They had practically smacked into it before they noticed it was there. "Not only that," Herb added, "it's painted the exact shade of the night sky, tinged brown to simulate clouds and pollution." Kuno tilted his head and stared at it. "That's pretty clever," he said. Everyone looked at him. He felt a sweat break on his brow. "Sorry," he said, feeling rather foolish for having complimented the enemy. _Well, it was! _he thought.

"Ok, Ryoga, do your thing," said Ukyo, placing her hand on his shoulder. Ryoga looked at her face. There was something about her expression he could not figure out. It tickled the back of his mind, but he didn't have time to figure out what it meant. "Everyone, get to a safe distance," said Ryoga as he picked up Ranma. "This thing is gonna come down hard."

He approached it and set down Ranma in a sitting position. He kneeled next to him. He had made sure Akane had said nothing and stayed out of sight, or else this would not work. "Ranma," he said slowly, forcing a choke into his voice. "I think it's time you know something." He paused for effect. "Akane, passed away, just a few minutes before you awoke. The last thing she said was to tell you she loved you, and to be strong. She said she wished she could have seen you one last time." He stood up. Ranma's eyes did not open, but his mouth twisted and tears came out of his eyes. _I got to him, _thought Ryoga. _Sorry, but I have to do this._

He stood behind Ranma and placed his hands on Ranma's shoulders. Ryoga drew in a deep breath, and searched his memory. The futility of this mission, the times Akane rejected him, the time she said she hated him, all these things Ryoga called to mind. Finally he pretended Akane really was dead. Tears flowed from his eyes. He felt his depression fill his body. He felt Ranma's depression fill his body.

He gathered their combined ki and crushed it, crushed it into a tiny core. He continued to crush it, until it could not stand the pressure any more. He let the core explode. "Release it, Ranma!" he screamed.

**"_SHISHI HOKODAN!_" **

The intense ki rushed out of their bodies in a pillar of pure energy. Ranma gasped in surprise and his eyes flew open with the rush of the ki. It gouged a huge gash in the side of the wall as it went up, and fell back down. Ryoga saw it coming and hung his head. "Hollow, Ranma," he whispered. "You're hollow." The massive glowing sphere of power descended like a crashing wave upon them. It detonated, sending out an explosion that completely destroyed a section of the wall, and a shockwave that shook the ground and flattened the dead forests for a mile. "Come on!" shouted Ryoga above the din and yanking Ranma to his feet. They ran as fast as they could, covering their heads from the falling debris that pelted them as it fell from the sky. They dove under a boulder that protruded from the ground at a low angle. There they caught their breaths, lost from the exertion of the _shishi hokodan _and the run to shelter.

After he caught his breath, Ryoga turned and looked at Ranma, who looked back. Ryoga cleared his throat. "Um, Ranma, about what I said earlier," he began. Ranma's eyes narrowed. "I just wanted to say it wasn't true." Ranma looked at Ryoga questioningly. Ryoga looked at the ground between his legs. He picked up a twig and twirled it his hands, set it down, and looked back up at Ranma. "I'm sorry, but I had to. I needed your your body to completely full of ki to destroy the wall." Ranma blinked. "What wall?" he asked. It was Ryoga's turn to blink. "What do you mean, what wall?!" he exclaimed.

He dragged Ranma out from under the boulder and pointed at the sky. "That wall!" he said. "The wall we've been talking about for a day now!" Ranma peered into the darkness. He continued to stare and said to Ryoga, "Well, I don't remember much from before just now, and I don't see anything..." Ryoga dragged him up ten feet in front of it. "Oh, now I see it!" Ranma said excitedly. Ryoga shook his head and muttered to himself. He sighed, and caught Ranma by the shoulder. "Come on," he said. "We've got some people who'd like to see you."

The party rushed up to the hillside to greet their triumphant men. Akane ran forward, tears in her eyes. "Ranma!" she called. Ranma ran to her and threw his arms around her. "Akane!" sighed Ranma. "I'm sorry for making you worry. " He hugged her tightly, then seperated from her, their arms on each other's shoulders, and looked at her face lovingly. Ryoga watched them, surprisingly, not jealous at all. At last he had come to accept fate. But he continued to watch their faces. Where have I seen that look before? he wondered. He thought about the previous events of the day. What had he done? There was blowing up the wall, there was talking to Ranma, there was the group finding the wall...He froze. It was there. Sometime then, someone had that look on their face, but who? Mousse, no. Shampoo, no. Akane, no. Ukyo... Ryoga gasped mentally. Ukyo had had that look on her face when she had encouraged him. It couldn't be... He looked at the others, who were all exchanged greetings with the now-completely revived Ranma. Ryoga looked particularly at Ukyo. Although...although in retrospect it makes perfect sense. All the time we spent together, all the times she chose me, all the times she looked so happy to see me, were all signs of her affection. I must admit, we have kind of grown on each other, haven't we? Now that I think about it...

Ryoga found himself being more and more attracted to Ukyo. I'd better talk to her soon, he thought, or else there may not be enough time before, well, _something_ happens.

"Hey Ryoga!"

Ryoga shook his head, pulled away from his thoughts. The others were leaving, and Shinnosuke waved for him to come along. Ryoga hurried to catch up with them.

After walking across the plain that lay inside the walls for a few minutes, Ryoga began to worry. "Listen to me, but don't stop walking," he said. The group glanced at him and kept on walking ahead. "There is no way that someone will not have noticed that. We've already wasted a lot of time back there. So I was thinking, perhaps we should pick up the pace a little?" As if to confirm his fears, an inhuman, piercing shriek sounded in the distance. The group froze, chilled by the cry and the sudden, icy wind that ensued. Another cry answered the first. It was disturbingly close, and Akane could feel the hairs stand up on the back of her neck and the flesh of her ears frost over. "Yeah," said Mousse, who was leading the group. "Yeah I think you're right."

They all stood for a moment, before breaking into a sprint. They dashed across the empty field. Another shriek sliced through the air but the party dared not slow their pace. "There!" shouted Mousse, pointing ahead and to the right. There was a sharp line of trees slowly approaching them. "I think we can hide in there!" They ran like mad for the shelter of the trees, and a another bloodcurdling scream ripped the sky, so close it shook the ground and hurt their ears. Ryoga knew they would not escape. The only chance they stood was to fight. Just then he saw a boulder off to his left. Yes, that might work! he thought. He split off to the left and ran straight to the boulder. He tore it from the ground and hefted it onto his shoulders. The shadow was _right there_. Ryoga did not think, but only acted. He tossed the boulder in the air between him and the thing. "_Bakusai tenketsu_!" he shouted and stabbed at the rock. It burst and showered the enemy with shrapnel. It screamed in anger and pain, and turned to flee.

But Ryoga did not let it escape. Leaping onto its back, he slid a knife out of a sheath on his thigh and plunged it into the nameless terror. It fell to the ground, as apparently it could fly, although Ryoga was not even of that while on its back. It let out a hiss, and then disintegrated right before his eyes. Ryoga looked at where it had lain. Ranma came up behind him. "They won't learn anything now," said Ryoga, a bit wistfully, "but then, neither will we." He sheathed his knife, and walked away.

After a debate, the group hesitantly set up camp once they had gone deep into the dark forest. They warmed themselves around the fire, still chilled from the icy wind. Mousse suddenly rose. He rummaged through his pack and brought out something long, wrapped in a wool blanket. "I have something for you, Ranma," he said, walking up to Ranma and placing it in his hands. "What is it?" he asked as he unwrapped it. "Two of the best swords in the world," replied Mousse with pride. "They are from the Shang dynasty. Take out the orange handled one first." Ranma did so. There arose a gasp of surprise from the entire group. "Whoa," said Ranma in awe.

"It is quite impressive, is it not?" said Mousse. "You can say that again!" said Akane with a grin. There was nothing unusal about the shape of the scimitar. It was only the fact that it glowed with fluorescent blue power that threw everyone off. "It is infused with a great energy that obeys its wielders thoughts," said Mousse. "It has even been known to change shapes. However, not many can wield it without being damaged by its immense strength. You, though, Ranma, are one who can, due to your own great power. It is called Xiao Lian." Ranma played with it for a moment, then sheathed it and pulled out the blue-handled sword. "Um, there's nothing here," said Ranma. All that was visible was a handle. Mousse smiled even broader. "Touch it," he said. Ranma passed his hand over the handle. Or tried to, anyways. His hand bumped something invisible. "Not much is known of Cheng Ying, but it is constructed of a strange material, in such a way that its saw-toothed double edges are only visible at dawn and dusk, pointed to the north. It's structure is what causes the invisibility. It is this structure that makes the sword hard to defend against, but also hard to defend with."

Ranma brought out his swords and swung them around. After nearly beheading some of his friends, Ranma put them away. Mousse said, wiping the sweat off his brow, "Tomorrow I'll teach you how to handle those things. I shall use Han Guang." He took out the last sword from his bundle. It too, had no visible blade. "Watch," he said, and gently extended it, point first, at Ranma, who stood six feet away. An indentation appeared on his shirt. Ryoga whistled. "That is one long sword," he said in amazement. "How can you handle it?" Mousse wrapped the sword up. "It's blade, unlike Cheng Ying's, does not entirely exist in this dimension," he explained. "This makes it incredibly light, but a challenge to wield, as you can imagine."

Shampoo chuckled. "Any others packing heat?" she asked. Mousse considered this thoughtfully. "That's a good question," he said. "I only joking!" she said. "No, really," said Mousse. "It is good to know how our friends will be fighting so that we may better know how to fight with, so we know what to expect and can play off them well." The others glanced at each other and nodded in agreement.

So they each took turns explaining what weapons they were skilled in: Ryoga and his rod, Shinnosuke and his deck brush, Shampoo and her oversized maces, Kodachi and her whip, Akane and her throwing shuriken, Kuno and his katana, Mint and his clawed gauntlets, Lime and his short sword, Ukyo and her enormous razor-sharp spatula, Taro and his nunchaku, and Hinako and her multiple chains. Herb did not deign to use a weapon but instead fought with his body and his ki alone. Afterwards, noting the party's exhaustion, Ranma suggested they all get some sleep. On this they agreed as well. And so they each set up their own shelters, or just plain sleeping bags, and went to sleep.

They had agreed to take turns at being watchmen, and Ranma offered to go first this night. Although he felt not at all tired, he soon could not stand the boredom and slowly drifted off to sleep. He dreamt there was a faucet of water, dripping, dripping drops of water. Annoyed, he went under it to try to turn it off. A drop of water hit his head. The dream dissolved, but Ranma did not know he had awakened, for another drop hit his head. It was then he noticed the water was unnaturally warm.

He opened his eyes. In the darkness he could not see anything

but the face in front of him. He began to shout but a hand clamped over his mouth. Another drop hit his head. He realized it was blood. "Shh!" said the figure. "Don't startle your friends. But I need your help." Ranma nodded slowly, and the person released the grip on his face. She, for the voice was female, extended her hand and helped him to his feet. "You supposed to be the night watchmen?" she asked, and although Ranma couldn't see the girl he knew she was smiling. He blushed, embarassed at being caught like this. "Uh, yeah," he said, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "It's alright, but your friends might not appreciate it if they got eaten or robbed," she said. Ranma just grinned sheepishly.

"Anyways," she said, her voice sobering instantly, "listen. Wake your leader and then come back here. We need to talk. And hurry!" Ranma walked over to the camp, a little caught off guard. Who was this chick? What did she want? And who's our leader? He supposed that would be Mousse. After all, it seemed he was taking charge in this expedition. He wondered if Mortimer had anything to do with it. Ranma bent down and shook Mousse gently. "Mousse," he said softly. He woke up instantly. Mousse's hand reached for his sword. "It's okay, Mousse," he whispered. "It's me, Ranma." Mousse's hand stopped, then changed directions and got his glasses. He put them on, stood up and followed Ranma to the side of the camp opposite the stranger. "You'd better get dressed," said Ranma, handing Mousse his bag. "Okay, Ranma, but what's going on?" he asked as he began to change. Ranma explained what happened, except he replaced the part about being "woken up by a stranger" to "caught off guard by stranger who snuck up on me from behind." Mousse listened to this and nodded. "Then let's go talk to her," he said.

They walked quietly past their sleeping group and over to the woman. "Draw Xiao," whispered Mousse. When Ranma looked at him, he added, "For light." Ranma eased the sword out of its scabbard and held it up. As they approached the girl, they could now get a good look at her. She appeared to be in her late teens. She had dark purple hair that was partially tied back in a loose, messy ponytail with a pink ribbon. Her shirt and arm-gloves were purple as well. Her shirt had a huge v-neck, and she wore a short lavender undershirt underneath it. Her pants were deep violet, and she had a large pink ribbon tied in a bow around her midsection. A cut ran across her right cheek, and every so often she would dab it with a cloth to catch the blood. They could not help but notice her incredible figure, but they did not let her cleavage distract them. Ranma wondered absently if it caught enemies off guard in battle.

The girl glanced at the sword, but did not say anything. "So," said Mousse, "you say you need our help. Is it your wound?" She snorted. "This thing is nothing compared to what happened to my group," she scoffed. "That's what I need your help with." "What happened to them?" Ranma inquired. "We were attacked," she said grimly. "We had just arrived here when this _thing_ came out of nowhere and nearly killed me and my friends. Everyone's hurt but me. They need help, or they will die." Mousse raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by 'here'?" he asked. She pointed to the north. "Only about two miles from here," she said. "How did you get through the wall?" he asked. She froze. "What wall?" she asked. Ranma and Mousse looked at each other. "The three hundred foot high one blocking all entrance to this region," Ranma said slowly. She did not say anything. "How did you get here?" asked Mousse. She sighed. "I don't know," she said finally. "Neither does anyone else in our group. We don't even know where we are." Ranma asked her if they came from China. Her reply threw them completely off. "What's China?" she asked. "Ummmm," said Ranma. "How about this," said Mousse, "Where do you come from?" She kicked a rock at her feet. "It's called Mizuho," she said. "I'm going to be it's next leader. It's in Tethe'alla. Are we in Sylvarant? I'm not so familiar with this side." Mousse rubbed his head. Ranma's mind swam. What the hell was going on with this hot girl? "Okay," said Mousse finally. "Alright. Fine. Whatever. Let's go get your friends first, and then we'll have a good, long, talk." "Sounds good to me," she said. "By the way, my name's Sheena. Sheena Fujibayashi." She held out her hand and Ranma shook it. "Well, at least your name sounds normal," he said. "I'm Ranma, and this is Mousse." Sheena shook Mousse's hand. "Mousse, hmm?" she said. "Is that moose like the animal, like the hair stuff, or like chocolate mousse?" Ranma laughed. "Whew, at least you know something like Earth!" he exclaimed, relieved. "What's Earth?" she asked, and Ranma moaned and proceeded to hit his head on a nearby tree. Mousse replied his name was like the hair product, and then they dragged Ranma off so they could go save Sheena's friends.

Akane awoke early in the morning, long before the sun was to come up. The glow of dawn had not even begun to appear on the horizon. She stretched and yawned. She didn't know what had woken her; she never got up this early. She looked down and noticed a piece of paper next to her on the ground, stuck there with a small knife. She tore it off and peered at it. She could just make out the words. It said:

Akane,

Ranma and I have left on an errand. Please continue as watchman until we return. Assemble who and what you need to give first aid to eight people. Do not wake the others who you do not need. We shall be back shortly.

-Mousse

She stared at the note, a little angry, and a little afraid. What were they thinking, leaving like that? Another thought came to mind; what was so important and urgent they had to leave like that? And why did they need first aid? Who was hurt? She decided that Mousse would not have left like this without a good reason and that she would go ahead and comply. Sighing, she rose, and prepared for the worst.

Ranma and Mousse kept up with Sheena as she sprinted through the forest and across the open plains. "Almost there!" she panted. Abruptly she stopped. She held her finger up to her mouth. "Listen," she whispered. Ranma barely caught it, a voice hardly above the wind. "Sheena....." it whispered. Sheena scanned the surroundings. Then she saw it. A dark shape lay ahead and to their left. The voice seemed to be coming from it. As they approached it, Sheena gasped. "Presea!" she exclaimed, helping the small girl up. The pink-haired girl could barely stand, and so Sheena cradled her in her arms instead. Presea's hair, which normally stuck out straight and bright, now was limp and dull. Her gray dress was torn in several places, and her young pink skin was now gray with weakness. "What happened?" asked Sheena. "Why did you come out here?" "Sheena," she whispered. "Don't go back there." "But I have to save the others!" said Sheena. "You know that!" Presea shook her head and coughed. She pointed to the forest they were about to enter. She took a deep breath. "Not yet," she said at last. "Another one is in there. It'll kill you if it finds you. As they are, the others are nearly dead, so it will likely pay no heed and leave them. You must wait until it leaves."

"That may take too much time," said Mousse, worriedly. "They may not survive that long. No, we have to get them now." Ranma nodded. "It's the only way," he said. "We can take care of it. We'll lure it out here and fight it, while you get them somewhere else, and when we're done we'll help you take them back." Sheena nodded. "I guess you're right," she said reluctantly. "Alright, I'm counting on you. Come on, Presea." She could easily carry the small girl, and Presea rested her head on Sheena's shoulder and closed her eyes. Sheena had an almost motherly air about her. "Don't screw this up," she warned. "The less there are of these guys, the easier for both of us," said Ranma. "We'll take care of it." "Good luck," she whispered.

Sheena took a roundabout way to get to the clearing in the forest where she had said the others were, and Ranma and Mousse headed directly in. They drew their swords. They came upon it. It just sat there, ghostlike, moving but not going anywhere. "Hey you!" they shouted. It was like their words stung it. It turned towards them and shrieked. "Catch us if you can, slowpoke!" shouted Ranma. They took off running back out to the field. Sheena made sure it had left before she came in and began to move her friends out.

Ranma and Mousse dashed for the field and burst into open space. It followed them all the way. In the dim light from the sky and Xiao Lian they could see it. A humanoid rode upon a fell beast, one nearly impossible to describe, except to say it was alive when by all logic it should be dead. Imagine a dragon, any kind of dragon. Next imagine an elephant next to it. Also imagine a cockroach, a vulture, a Rottweiler, and a slug-infested cypress tree. If you took all those and _literally _put them in a blender, then you might begin to get some idea of the monster upon which the relievingly plain green-skinned man-zombie rode.

Sufficive to say, Ranma and Mousse wanted to kill the beast, and the one that rode upon it. "Come and get some!" yelled Mousse. The two things screeched, and the Zeit Moerder (such as they are called; time murderer) leapt off his beast, and brought out his weapon. The infernal edge looked fiendish, but Ranma did not care. Leaping forward, he brought the blades out in front of him and swept them outward in a huge arc, tearing through the inhuman being. It howled in rage and pain, and swung its sword madly about itself. Ranma blocked it easily and landed behind the Zeit Moerder. It turned around just in time to see the blue blade smash into its own skull.

Ranma turned around to face the beast. Mousse had already been at it a bit; there were huge gashes in the monstrosity spilling gallons of dark red blood onto the dirt, and more cuts were made as Mousse passed his long sword through its flesh with apparent ease. Ranma thought Mousse could take care of it. A hidden appendage suddenly burst out of the abomination's grotesque hide and kocked Mousse to the ground.

Ranma raced across the bloody field and jumped onto the monster's back. With its attention focused on Mousse, it did not notice Ranma until he had made it to the other side and amputated the limb that was preparing to turn Mousse into a human shish kabob.

Wasting no time, Mousse got to his feet and helped Ranma turn the beast back into blender slush. The monster defeated, Ranma bent over double and panted. So, close to the ground, he noticed the unholy, putrid smell of the monster's blood and flesh. He stood straight up, slightly sick. "I need some fresh air," he announced, "and a change of clothes." Mousse looked in disdain at his own soiled garments. "Me too," he said glumly. They began to walk off the field into the forest. Sheena came up to meet them. "There'll be time to congratulate you later," she said, evidently reading Ranma's mind (or face). "Come on. We've got to hurry." "What about our clothes?" asked Mousse. "They're horrible," she replied, leading them into the forest, "but I don't think they'll mind under the circumstances."

They came upon a cave. "I brought them in here," she explained. They entered, and for a moment were plunged into darkness until Sheena brought out a flashlight-like device. She pointed at a woman and a young man with her flashlight. "Mousse, you take these two," she said, and pointing her flashlight at another young man and a teenage girl, "Ranma, you take those two. I'll get the other three." They hefted the people into somewhat comfortable conditions and took off running, just as the first rays of sunlight began to peer over the horizon.


	3. New Friends, Old Wounds

New Friends, Old Wounds

The commander drummed his fingers on his desk. The officer waited nervously, listening to the distant hum of the machine and his superior rapping on the black stone. "What do you suggest we do, hm?" said the commander finally. The officer said nothing. The commander leaned forward. "We cannot allow this to get out of hand. If my inferences are correct, then our entire operation could be in jeopardy! And the news of their arrival will only upset the Master all the more." A thin, humorless smile settled upon his face. "And you know what happens when he gets angry." The officer swallowed and felt a cold sweat break on his brow. The commander leaned back in his chair and steepled his hands in front of him.

After a long moment, he sat up straight and looked the officer in the eye and pointed at him. "I'm giving you full command of my forces for one full day," he said. "Use whatever means necessary, but bring me proof they are all dead!" He procured a dagger from underneath his desk and twirled the point around in his finger. "One day," he repeated. "That's all you've got. If you fail, well." He chuckled and brought his knife in front of his face to stare at it. "Let's just say there won't be a place for you here anymore." He glanced at the officer, then at his watch. "Your day starts now, Lieutenant. Have I made myself clear?" "Inescapably, sir," he whispered. He gave a quick salute and walked out the door. He let out a deep breath he forgot he had been holding. He could still hear the commander's words in his mind: If you fail, well....

He desperately hoped he wouldn't fail.

Akane felt the first ray of sun hit her cheek. It was warm and friendly, and she basked in it for a long time. She knew the sun would soon be obscured by the ever-present smog and clouds, almost completely blocked out. Still, the few rays of sunlight that made it through each morning were a blessing. They were so much different from the rest of the world. "When they leave?" asked Shampoo, who stood behind her. "About an hour ago," she replied.

Akane, Shampoo, and Ryoga stood on he edge of the forest, waiting for Ranma and Mousse to return. They hadn't said why they needed first aid to be ready, but if Mousse made a request like that, there had to be a reason.

"Wait, what's that?" asked Ryoga. Akane followed Ryoga's finger. There appeared to be several large shapes moving towards them. "Is that them, or something else?" he wondered. Akane shook her head. "We'll just have to wait and find out. As they moved closer, they could see the large shapes seperate into smaller shapes resting upon one small shape each; they were carrying something, or someone. By the time the people were thirty feet away, they already knew for certain it was Ranma and Mousse. "This way!" said Akane as she gestured to where Ryoga and Shampoo held some parted foliage. "We've prepared a special area for this," said Akane as she and Ryoga and Shampoo followed them into the small clearing. Eight seperate sleeping bags lay on the ground in two rows, and they set down the unmoving bodies upon them. Akane noticed one bed was not filled.

"Where's the eighth?" she asked. "That's her," said Mousse and pointed at Sheena, who was laying down a blue-haired man onto a sleeping bag. Sheena looked up. "I don't need treatment," she protested. "Sheena," said Ranma. She bowed her head. "Okay, but do them first," she said. "I'm not that bad. Really. Anyways, here's some things we brought that I managed to find. All our weapons are here, too. I'm surprised all our stuff wasn't taken." Akane rummaged through the bag Sheena handed her. She looked at them all for a moment and then asked Sheena what they were. "Let me help you, okay?" she said. "This is an apple gel, and what it does is..." Sheena went off and helped Akane, Ryoga, and Shampoo heal the wounded. Ranma sighed and sat down on the ground, exhausted. Something orange landed in his lap. He looked up. Sheena was looking at him. "Eat it," she said. "It'll make you feel better."

Ranma poked it. It felt like a package of gelatin wrapped in plastic. He hestitantly brought the orb of gel to his mouth and took a bite. Once it was in his mouth, he noticed it had a texture like that of smooth toothpaste, not the gritty kind, but not foamy, and this one tasted like some sort of melon. Ranma quickly finished the rest. "Well, it was good but-" Ranma cut himself off short. "Ohhhh," he said. A feeling of strength and energy surged into his body and he felt completely recharged. "Amazing!" he said. "That was awesome!" He went and got the same kind from Sheena and gave it to Mousse. He ate it, and stood for a while just staring off into space, his hand on his chin. "That's wonderful," he said after a minute of silence. "I wonder how they do it." "It's kinda like eating candy, only it's a lot better for you," Sheena explained. "And the effect doesn't really wear off, except in battle. There's all different kinds. I'll show you later."

Ranma took this oppurtunity to examine the newcomers closely. There was Sheena and Presea, and six others, eight in all. There was a teenage boy, about sixteen or seventeen, with short brown hair that stuck up. He was dressed in a red shirt and gloves and dark blue overalls. Twin swords were strapped to his hips. There was an older woman, whose age Ranma could not really tell; she could be anywhere from twenty to thirty, but she was very beautiful. As he watched, Sheena set down a gunmetal blue staff with a sapphire crystal at the top next to her and moved on. She had flaring white hair and a kind, scholarly face. She wore a white shirt, black trousers, white boots, and an orange robe type garment. There was a young boy, thirteen, Ranma guessed, who had the same white hair and facial features as the woman. At his side Sheena placed a shimmering kendama. Ranma decided that these two snow haired people were probably related somehow. The wore a blue and white outfit that had short sleeves and legs. Ranma moved on.

There was a young man in his early twenties with shockingly red hair, kept out of his face by a white headband that went across his forehead. He wore a strange outfit as well; a salmon colored vest over a black shirt, with salmon-and-black gauntlets and flaring white baggy pants. A sword was sheathed at his waist and a black shield with gold edges and trimmings lay next to him. There was another man that, although didn't look so weird, looked pretty tough. He had to be at least twenty five. He wore his long blue hair in a large ponytail, tied at the bottom, that fell down to his mid-back. He wore a sort of white half-shirt that covered his chest, and brown pants, over which were tied a pair of powerful-looking greaves. His hands were handcuffed together, so Ranma assumed he fought with his legs rather than his hands, and that the handcuffs were a voluntary thing, rather than being forced as if he were their prisoner. The last one was a teenage blonde girl. She wore a long sleeved white, blue-trimmed jacket and dark blue stockings. She had an ornate necklace attached to her throat, and Ranma stared at it for a while. Next to her were a pair of star-shaped chakram. Sheena set a heavy ax down by Presea. Ranma was amazed that that little girl could wield such a weapon. Sheena had difficulty just carrying it. She sighed and sat down on one of the makeshift beds and began to absently shuffle some cards around in her hands as she watched the others work. Every now and then she would call advice to them, but she herself stayed down. Ranma had noticed that all of them had a small jewel attached to their bodies somewhere, but he decided that if it was anything important Sheena and the others would tell them about it later.

When his wife and the the others finished with the unconscious, they came over to Sheena. "Alright, it's your turn," said Akane. Sheena sighed, and removed her long gloves. She undid her ribbon around her waist, and took off her outer shirt. She closed her eyes and hung her head as they examined her. Ranma gasped. There was a huge tearing slash running down her back. "Sheena!" exclaimed Mousse. "How could do this to yourself? Exerting yourself like that could have killed you!" "I'm sorry," she whispered sadly. Tears welled up in her eyes. "But I knew if I put myself ahead of the others, they all might die. I had to save them. I'm sorry." The tears streamed down her face silently. Mousse's face softened. He went over to her and placed his arms around her. She hugged him tightly as she cried into his shoulder. "I'm sorry too," he said quietly. "I know your love for your friends must be strong. I'm sorry I doubted you. But the time for apologies is over. We must first get you treated. No one blames you for your actions. You are truly a good friend. If I never found out another thing about you, that would be enough. I'm sure they love you too. And so we must not let them down. We must keep their Sheena alive and well for them. They need their friend." He looked down at her, and she looked back up. He smiled. She released him, and wiped the tears from her eyes. He let go of her and stood up. "Thank you, Mousse," she whispered. "Anytime," he said. Akane, Shampoo, and even Ryoga, were misty-eyed as they went to administer aid to Sheena. Mousse turned to go, and heard Shampoo whisper to Akane, "You see? I tell you he could be sweet sometimes! Now if only he do this kind of thing for me..."

Mousse walked away and let Akane, Shampoo, and Ryoga do their work. Mousse watched them as they began to clean the wound and prepare to sew it up. He turned back to Ranma. Ranma turned back around to see Mousse. His eyes were a bit red, and Mousse noticed. "Oh yeah," murmured Ranma. Mousse placed a friendly hand on Ranma's shoulder. "That wasn't, wrong, was it?" asked Ranma. Mousse shook his head and smiled. "No, my friend," he said, "it just means you have a soul." Ranma nodded slowly. "You are a good man, Ranma, although I don't say it often enough. I remember when I first met you. I doubt you would have had a second thought about sending her away back then. But you have grown. And so have I. I don't think I could have trusted her back then, either." Ranma looked surprised. Mousse let his hand drop. "I am only human, you know. We all have our faults. But the good thing is, we also have the potential to change. So really, what matters is not how many faults you have, but how strong your will and determination to change them. And though we may not ever eliminate all our faults, we will have at least had the want in our hearts." Ranma stared at him. "You are amazing," Ranma said. "You're so insightful, and you just seem to always know just what to say." Mousse grinned and shrugged. "Most of the knowledge, and all of the desire, was always there," he said. "I just learned how to use the knowledge and act out the desire. Eventually I believe you will learn to as well." "I hope so," said Ranma. "I never know what to say." "I think you do," said Mousse, and walked off, leaving Ranma to watch Sheena get treated and to wonder what he had meant.

Akane wiped off the caked blood on her hands and tossed the damp cloth into a bag so no evidence was left behind. Mousse came up to her. "How are they?" he asked worriedly. "They're all fine, although there is some concern about Sheena's wound," she said. "What concern?" he asked. "We're not sure it'll heal properly, or at all. She could get an infection, too. We just aren't equipped well enough to handle that serious an injury. Frankly, I think her wound is worse than any of the others." Mousse swore. After a moment of thought, he punched his fist into his palm. He ran off towards the wounded's place. Akane raised her hand to stop him, but let it fall without saying anything.

Mousse kneeled over Sheena. A sweat had broken over her, and Mousse felt her forehead. He was terrified by her extreme temperature. He gently shook her. Her brown eyes opened slowly. "What is it?" she whispered hoarsely. "Your bag," he said, "what did it have in it? Anything that could heal your wound?" "Yeah, but..." she trailed off. "What, Sheena?" he asked firmly, grasping her shoulders. "Could need it later," she whispered. "What is it?" he repeated. She pointed towards her bag. "Blue bottle," she said. "Water of life." That was odd, he thought. That was what had kept Shinnosuke alive. He wished that he had some of the moss, but they had used the last available on Ranma. He found a bottle of it and put it up to her lips. She pushed it away. "Don't drink it," she said. "Put it on the skin. On the wound first, then the face." He gently turned her over and spilled some of the the water onto her back. The wound reacted instantly. It sealed and vanished as it if had never existed. Mousse was stunned. The water of life never had that sort of effect, according to what he'd heard. He turned her back over and poured some of the water onto her forehead and face. She took in a deep breath.

"It was more serious than I'd thought," she said after a few minutes. Mousse checked her forehead; it was normal. "If you don't mind, I'm going to go to sleep now," she said, and yawned. Mousse nodded and got up. Sheena's head fell to one side and she was fast asleep. Mousse walked slowly out of the area. He wondered if the water of life she had was in any way related to the water of life from the Higo forest. They displayed similar attributes, but Sheena's water was much more potent. Perhaps her water had a higher concentration of the moss. Or maybe there was no relation, and just a coincidence of names.

Wrapped up in his thoughts, Mousse did not notice the rustle of leaves as the stranger disappeared into the brush behind him.

Akane decided to check up on the patients. It had only been a little while since she had finished, but it wouldn't hurt. She got up and walked towards the path that led to the treatment area. Mousse passed her on the path, but said nothing. He seemed preoccupied. She shrugged and kept going. As she came upon the clearing, she noticed that Sheena's bed was damp. Curious, she gently rolled her over, to find her wound had completely vanished. Akane raised an eyebrow, not so surprised at things like this anymore. Next to the bed on the ground she found a glass bottle. Akane wondered if this was the water of life Sheena had talked about. She said it was very strong and could heal wounds instantly and restore a bit of a person's energy. She said it was to be used sparingly, and that she only had a small supply, but in the condition she was in, Akane was relieved Sheena allowed Mousse to give her some.

The others seemed to be doing well, none of them appeared to have any problems taking the stitches and none of the wounds seemed to be infected. It was a good thing they had some antibiotics, but Akane regretted not bringing more. They had run out before they got to Sheena. She decided to leave, and stood up to take one last look at the group. Turning away from them, she began to exit the area. No sooner than she had taken two steps she heard a heavy thud from behind her. She had no time to react before it grabbed her mouth and dragged her into itself. She smelled a horrible rotting odor as its hot, foul breath blew on her face. It chuckled. "You and your friends are going to die!" it growled. "No one can stop us now! Are you ready to die?' it asked saracastically. It raised a knife in the air.

Akane squeezed her eyes and prepared for the blade to plunge into her body. Her muscles were tense as waited, and waited, and waited for what seemed like an eternity. Then her time moved forward again, and she heard a choked cough come from the thing that held her. Something hard prodded her back, and the thing released its grip. She heard a knife clatter behind her and a voice say, "You know, I don't think she is, but I hope you are." Akane turned around. The thing was a green humanoid with pebbled skin and red eyes. Something was coming out of its stomach. Then, with a metallic _shing!_ it went back in, and the monster fell to the ground. The teenage boy stood behind him, clutching his side with his left hand, and his bloody sword in the right. Akane felt a chill run down her spine as she realized it was his sword going through the evil thing that poked her.

He sighed and sat down on his mat, wincing a little. He wiped off his blade on some large nearby leaves. "Are you all right?" he asked. She nodded. "Thank you," she breathed. "You saved my life!" He blushed and looked away, then sheathed his sword and looked up at her. "You're welcome," he said. He extended his hand towards her. She took it and he shook her hand. "My name's Lloyd Irving. What's yours?" "Akane," she said. "Akane Saotome." Lloyd let go of her hand and cocked his head. "Where have I heard the name Saotome before?" he asked himself. Akane ventured to answer his rhetorical question. "Perhaps you know my husband, Ranma?" she said hesitantly. He shook his head. "I haven't heard that name," he said. "I don't know. Maybe I'll think of it sometime." Akane indicated his bed with her hand. "You should get some rest," she said. He chuckled. "Nah, I'm not tired," he said. He saw Sheena's bag. "Wow, we still have that?" he asked incredulously. "Hand it to me." Akane did so and Lloyd looked inside. "Cool!" he said, and drew out an orb of yellow gel. He looked at her and gestured with it. "Lemon," he said. "Just need to heal myself a little, give me back my strength, my 'HP', I guess." He laughed and ate the jelly quickly. He stood up and stretched. "Oh yeah, that's better," he said. He moved around freely with no sign of injury. Akane was astounded. She assumed Sheena had been exaggerating about the items she claimed to possess, and that included these 'gels'. Apparently, she hadn't been exaggerating at all.

"Well, I guess I should introduce you," he said after a few minutes of exercising, "since they don't seem to hae the power to do so themselves. Of course," he added with a grin, "they won't know you've met, so unfortunately, you'll have to actually talk to them later." He made a clicking sound with his tongue and looked at her funny with a grin on his face. "Not always the most pleasant thing, especially with the Professor." Akane just stared at him, but he seemed to find her silence and her utterly confused stare even funnier, and he laughed so hard tears came out of his eyes. Akane could not help but grin, and she too was soon laughing uncontrollably. After a while they ran out of breath, and continued to laugh and cough as they were doubled over, gasping for breath.

Finally, they got up and wiped the the tears from their eyes. "Whew!" said Lloyd. "That's the best laugh I've had in a while. Anyhow, let's meet the gang. This guy here is Genis Sage, one of my first and best friends." He pointed at the boy in the blue. "Twelve, a master of spells, expert of kendama, and resident genius. Only one smarter than him is his sister, Raine Sage." He indicated the white-haired woman. "Also a master of spells, but mostly those for healing. She's pretty extreme. She's crazy about artifacts, archaeology, and studying. I mean crazy. She loves it so much," he looked around and lowered his voice, "I think it's almost orgasmic for her. Ahem. Great friend though. Our beloved Professor Sage is like a mother to us. Very caring, but sometimes too logical. Moving on, we have my dear friend Colette Brunel." He stood in front of the blonde girl. "Very sweet and compassionate. Loves all life. She was going to be the Chosen, before it was discovered to be a fraud. She uses chakram. And now the other side's Chosen One, the one and only Zelos Wilder." He was pointing at the red-haired man. "What can I say? He loves the ladies, and the ladies love him. Well, except for Sheena. I don't think Colette likes him very much either. Total womanizer, but dependable and good-hearted. He uses short sword with shield. Next is Regal Bryant. The president of the Lezareno Company, he was forced to kill his girlfriend-turned-monster using his hands, and ever since has worn those handcuffs that he recieved when he turned himself in. Uses the Traubel style of fighting, using only his legs. Next is Presea. Her sister, Alicia, was Regal's girlfriend whom he killed. She is not very expressive, but is tender-hearted and very caring. Genis likes her a lot. Can't blame him, she's really cute. The thing is, she's twenty-eight. It may seem hard to believe, but because of the Cruxis Crystal, her time stopped for sixteen years. She is a powerful axman. Finally we have Sheena Fujibayashi." "We've met her," said Akane. "She was up?" asked Lloyd. "Yes," she said, a bit wistfully. "She's the reason you're all still alive. She saved your lives, and nearly lost hers in the process. But thanks to your water of life, she appears to be doing just fine."

Lloyd stared at Sheena a long time, a sad look in his eyes. "I love her," he said. He looked at Akane. "Have you ever wanted something so much it hurt?" he asked. Akane nodded slowly, and looked at the ground. "Yes," she whispered. "That's how much I love her," he said, "and I know she loves me back. I've seen it in her eyes before. I've seen it in action a few times before. But this..." He let the thought finish itself in Akane's mind. "Colette likes me too, but I've never seen it really, not like with Sheena. Colette and I have known each other forever. It would almost be like being love with my sister, you know?" Lloyd shook his head and wiped his eyes. "Ahh, I've gone on too much," he said. "We should leave here. If one guy has found us, more are gonna follow." Akane nodded. "I'll go tell my group," she said. "Apparently they didn't hear anything. Meanwhile, you wake your friends up, and get them ready to leave." Lloyd nodded, and Akane rushed off to see Mousse.

Within half an hour, they were gone.

"Geez, that's the weirdest thing I've ever been through," said Ranma after Raine had finished explaining where they were from. Kuno hummed thoughtfully for a moment and rubbed his chin. "Well, Ranma," he said, "What about the time at the bath house with the Shinsengumi girls?" Ranma swore he felt a vein pop out on his head. "I thought we agreed to never talk about that again!" he screamed in Kuno's face. "Ahh, right...." Akane blushed as she recalled the incident. "What happened, what happened, was there something sexy?!" asked Zelos excitedly, who was quickly smacked by Sheena. "Oww," he said, rubbing his head. "Well, there was these crime-fighting girls, and after one of their patrols, they decided to take a bath, and then Ranma was there and he wound up sneaking over to the girls side to get a note, and then he had to talk to this young girl to get it, and then the girl, this Xiaoxing, pulled this wash-and-scrub move on him, and then he fell into the water and changed into a guy and the girls had been talking about themselves, you know, and then they saw him, and they knew he had heard, and he was dazed by the incredibly good-feeling washing technique and got beat up by the girls and tied naked to a telephone pole for five hours before someone actually got him down!" exclaimed Kuno in one long sentence. Ranma felt several more veins pop, and what he thought was a mild heart attack. Ranma thought he heard his head catch fire from his burning face. Everyone else could not keep from laughing out loud. Everyone except Zelos.

Zelos looked love-struck. "Ohhh, what I wouldn't give to get washed by a cute little hunny," he said longingly. After everyone stopped laughing, Raine asked them, "What did you mean he turned into a man when he fell into the water? Was he wearing a disguise or something?" "Oh, that's right," said Shampoo. "They no know about Ranma curse." "Oh yeah," said Akane. She picked up a glass of water. Ranma was sitting with his head down, not hearing anything but the embarassing words in his ears, which is why he was surprised when Akane splashed him with the water.

The entire party from the other world gasped. "What's the idea?" asked Ranma. "We thought they should know," said Ryoga, gesturing to the Sylvarant group, who sat with their mouths gaping at Ranma. "Well, you know," said Ranma as he bent down, "I'm not the only one!" he splashed Ryoga in the face. They gasped again, as Ryoga was now a piglet. "We too, share the curse," said Mousse as he held his arm around Shampoo. "I turn into a duck and she's a cat." For a long time no one said anything. Then Zelos started crying, and Genis said, "That's so cool!" and Raine stared at them eagerly. "Now, now, Professor," said Lloyd, laying a hand on her shoulder. "But I must study them!" she exclaimed. "At least let me run some tests, examine them and...." She kept going. Lloyd looked at the Earth group and jerked his thumb at her. They read it perfectly; it said, "See?!"

"What was that?" said Raine. Zelos continued to sob. Akane explained about the Jusenkyo incidents. Zelos went over to Ranma and placed his hands on Ranma's shoulders. "Waahhh!" said Zelos. "I'm so jealous! I wanna go to Jusenkyo, I wanna go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" "So then, if they turn into these things in cold water, they change back with hot?" asked Raine. Akane placed her finger on her nose. Raine tried it with her tea on Ranma. He turned back into a hot, annoyed, sugary man. "MARVELOUS!" she exclaimed. Lloyd turned his finger in a circle around his ear. And so on and so forth. These sorts of things continued for a while, until they finally wore themselves out and had to go to sleep.

Mousse took on the responsibility of night watchman. He sat, and gazed out across the plain. Nervously, Mousse fingered the leather bundle he carried at his side. He didn't want to have to use them, but things seemed so desperate, he was afraid he might have to take desperate measures. What would remain of his pride, his honor as a warrior if he...

"Hey, Mousse," said a voice, dispelling his musings. He turned to see that the little pink-haired girl was sitting next to him. "Oh, hello," he said softly. "Anything wrong?" She seemed sad. "No," she replied. "Well, okay, a little something. I can't sleep. Too many bad dreams." Mousse nodded slowly. She was a very pretty girl. He wondered how old she was. She looked so young, her face was so soft, but her personality was much more mature, subdued, and her strength was immense. So he asked her. She looked at him oddly. "Promise you'll believe me?" she asked. Mousse smiled and nodded. She stared into the fire. "Twenty-eight," she said at last. Mousse nodded. He was not surprised. "You're not surprised?" she asked. "No, not much surprises me," he said. "I've found that almost anything that might happen usually already has, or will soon."

He hesitated a moment. "You're, Presea, right?" he said after a moment, his face scrunched in uncertainty. She smiled and shook her head yes. He relaxed. "Well, it's good to meet you Presea," he said, and extended his hand. She shook it. "If you need anything, just ask me and I'll do my best to comply," he said. "That is, if you want to ask me, or if no one else can help." "Thank you," she said. "Same thing here. I'd be glad to help you. You're a nice person." He chuckled. "You're a nice person too," he said. Presea looked at the sleeping figures. "You're all nice people," she said. "It's so hard to find really good people these days. I consider ourselves lucky Sheena ran into you first." Mousse looked at her. "I consider ourselves lucky just to have met you all," he said. "Together, I'm sure we can accomplish more than we ever could have alone." "And it's a good thing we met you because we have no idea where we are and we don't even have a map!" said Presea. Mousse laughed. "Yes, those would be a couple of good things to have!" he agreed. Presea rested her head on Mousse. "So tired," she said. She fell asleep, and her dreams were only of all the good people she knew, not of the bad.

Mousse sat with his arm around her, staring off into the distance. He considered, for not the first nor last time, their chance of success. In his mind, it was greatly improved by the arrival of the newcomers. But the odds were still heavily against them. The thoughts of what could happen if they did not win filled him with dread. But he knew that as long as they had any chance, they had to keep fighting with the odds they had. And it was for this reason he was able to maintain his confidence, hell, to just be able to keep going. He stroked the leather bag Presea's hair brushed against. On the inside, he was not always so confident as he was on the outside. Not at all. Mousse sighed, and waited for daylight to come.

As the sun rose almost imperceptably above the horizon, the group set out again, covering the remains of their stay. They walked according to Mousse's direction, first going north, then northwest. After about an hour of traveling, he abruptly called the group to a halt. "Dammit," he whispered to himself. "What's wrong?" asked the blue-haired man, Regal. "I, I can't read this," said Mousse fearfully. "I don't know what this word is! Mort never taught me this!" "May I see?" asked Raine. "Sure," he said, and handed her the book. She leafed through it. "Hmm," she said. "Sorry, but I can't read it." "It's alright," he said, taking the book back from her. "I'm the only one who can read German here. Not many now it these days." He scoffed. "_Einfach meiner Fuss!"_ he muttered. Colette looked up. "Ah, what did you say?" she asked. He looked at her.

"Oh, nothing," he said. "Just angry. It means 'easy, my foot!' in German." "Say it again," she said eagerly. "Einfach meiner Fuss?" he said, puzzled. Her eyes went wide. "What's the word you can't read?" she asked excitedly. He showed her in the book. "That one," he said, pointing to the word that read "Zusammenprall." "I know what it means literally, but it doesn't make sense," he said. "What does it mean?" asked Kodachi. "It means, reflected together, or bounce together," he said. Colette was confused. "I can't read it," she said. "Well, like I said, not many people know German," he said impatiently. "Not that," she said. "I can't read the characters. Say it out loud." "Tzoo-zahm-man-prahl," he said, drawing out the sounds, saying the syllables seperately. "Oh, I know what that means!" she said. Mousse looked at her incredulously. "You _do_?" he asked in disbelief. "Yep," she said. "In the language of the angels it means impact." Mousse said it. "Impact. Impact. Im-pact," he repeated.

"It makes sense," said Taro. "After all, an impact occurs when two things bounce off each other. Or into each other." Mousse laughed. "Of course!" he said. "It's so simple! I just always assumed it meant to bounce alongside each other, not _into _each other. How did you know that? What else do you know?" Colette shrugged. "Say something to me," she suggested. "Okay," said Mousse, rubbing his chin. "_Am Wochenende besuche ich Freunde._" She replied, "On the weekend I visit friends." "_Wirklich? Ich finde das macht Spass, aber ich lese nicht gern, und ich glaube Lloyd werdt sag so auch._" "Really? I think that is fun, but I don't like to read, and I believe Lloyd will say so also." Lloyd laughed, then flushed hotly as he realized the joke. "Hot damn, you _can_ speak German!" exclaimed Mousse.

"I guess so," said Colette, "although I know it as the Angelic Language, from whence our language, Sylvish, or Tethe'allan, was derived." Ryoga pondered this. "Derived, huh?" he said. "That's interesting. English, the predominant and most important language on Earth, and German happened to once be the same language, over a thousand years ago, until the Anglo-Saxons split into the Anglos and the Saxons and their language developed seperately. I think it is no coincidence that two languages from two supposedly 'completely different' worlds could possibly develop exactly the same way, especially considering that they use many of the same expressions. In fact, other languages, such as Japanese, which is the language most of my friends here were raised on, could possibly be a language in your world too. It probably is. Take a look at Sheena's last name. 'Fujibayashi'? That's definitely Japanese." "What are you suggesting?" asked Zelos. Ryoga stayed silent for a moment. "I'm merely drawing a conclusion based on evidence," he said finally. "What's that?" asked Hinako. "That there is no way our two worlds are not directly related and intimately connected," said Ryoga, crossing his arms over his chest. "And the languages prove it. Our worlds are not as unrelated as we think."

There was a hushed moment as the cold, huddled group considered the facts. Ryoga was right. There was no two ways about it. At that moment, a distant cry alerted them to their surroundings. Mousse looked at the book. "Well, in that case, we have to find somewhere that 'delves deep where the impact revealed the riches of the Earth below'," he said. The cry sounded again. "I suggest we start looking."

There were no objections.

"Fine, then. In accordance with your will, all five of you will fight me, and we'll each use one weapon. As a token of my good faith, choose your own weapon as well as mine. As you said, the only rules are as thus; while your weapon is usable, all your hits must be with a weapon. Once your weapon is destroyed, you may use your body. Combatants must either be knocked unconscious or forced to admit defeat to be defeated. Defeated combatants are not to be hit. The stakes are as thus; if the Shinsengumi win, I will pay double your tuition fee, and you will teach me everything you know. But if I win, I pay half the fee and you teach me everything you know. Winner also pays any hospital bills. Are we all agreed?" The girls nodded their heads. "Then let's fight!"

Mousse marched alongside Shampoo, sweeping the ground for any clues as to where they were going. He found himself thinking of the time he fought the Shinsengumi girls. He quickly remembered what he was supposed to be doing, and buried the memory as fast as it had arisen. He told himself he was not trying to forget, he was only putting it in its place. He had no right to forget it. But right now he had a job to do, and that was to find the place they were supposed to be looking for.

Mousse still was a bit shocked about the revelation Ryoga had pointed out. It was obvious they were not from this world; none of them knew anything about Earth's history, and too much of their own to be faking it. No group could come up with that on the spot and have all their stories exactly match (Lloyd doesn't count, though, because he knows zilch) and no imaginary world would have ever been dreamed up in that much detail, except for maybe Lord of the Rings. Mousse didn't think they had the time or the will to make everything up.

He felt someone tap his left shoulder. He looked left to see Shinnosuke standing there. "What is it?" asked Mousse. "I said," said Shinnosuke, "I forgot what we were doing, but I found this. Does it mean anything?" Shinnosuke handed him a shiny, oval stone. It was black and had swirls of amber hues spiraling in it. It was quite beautiful, but Mousse knew nothing of it. He told Shinnosuke so, who shrugged. "Maybe someone else knows?" he suggested. "Maybe," said Mousse doubtfully.

"Anyone know what this is?" he asked loudly waving the stone in the air. Everyone turned and glanced at it. One by one, they shook their heads no and resumed searching. Lloyd stared at it for a few moments. "Wait," he said, walking over to Mousse. He took the smooth object from his hand and inspected it closer. "Know anything?" asked Akane hopefully. "Yep," replied Lloyd. "This is a refined piece of inhibitor ore." Raine squinted at it. "Ah, yes, I see now," she said. The rest of Lloyd's companions made similar affirmations of recognition. "Inhiba-what?" asked Ranma, dumbfounded. "Inhibitor ore," said Raine, "is a special type of metalloid that, when carved with specific runes, enables an Exsphere to be mounted onto the skin without negative consequences." Ranma stared, then began to sob. "Why me?" he asked himself. "What he means," said Akane angrily, "is that we have no idea what you're talking about, and we would like for you to explain it to us." Raine looked at Lloyd. "It'll take a while," said Lloyd unsurely. "Don't worry, we've got a while," said Taro. "Explain it to us while we keep searching,' suggested Ukyo.

And so Raine and Lloyd expounded the basic mechanics of Exsphere purpose, usage and history unto them, and they proceeded to be in awe. "Intriguing," said Ryoga. "As a matter of fact," said Zelos, "Lloyd and Sheena were on a journey collecting all the Exspheres in our world

. Together. Alone. With each other. In the dark wilderness." Zelos sighed and looked wistful. "Uhhhhh," said Ranma. Suddenly realizing the embarrassment on Sheena's and Lloyd's faces, and the shock, understanding, and confusement that had settled on everyone else's faces, Zelos said, "Uh, what I mean is, maybe they have some extra ones they might, be, willing, to, let, you, use?" He flushed hotly and smiled sheepishly. "Uh, yeah," said Lloyd, awkwardly fumbling through his pockets. "I've got some if y'all wanna use 'em, but uh, you're gonna need more ore to make more Key Crests, so, yeah." "Alright," said Mousse, "Keep an eye out for anything like this or any other clues. Let's go!" The others filed out silently and began to sweep the ground.

Zelos came over to Lloyd and Sheena and said, "Sorry about that guys. I got carried away in the passion of the thought. And I forgot you wanted to kinda keep it under wraps." "Huh?" said Lloyd. "Keep what under wraps?" asked Sheena slowly, or perhaps, nervously. "Oh come on," said Zelos, throwing up his hands. "Everyone can tell. Well, at least I can." "Tell what?" asked Lloyd, genuinely confused. You _idiot_! thought Sheena desperately. "Now, now, everyone knows that people in love deny it," said Zelos with a shrug, "so I must have hit it pretty close to the mark for you to get embarassed. And it's not like love is a bad thing." "Oh, that," said Lloyd, finally realizing what he was talking about.

"Yeah, that," Sheena fumed as she hit Zelos over the head. "You know," he said, wincing, "they say you also are the meanest to the ones you love." Sheena hit him again, harder. "Well then THEY must be WRONG!" she shouted. "Maybe you're right," Zelos groaned. "I swear, even Lloyd is better than you are," she grumbled. "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Lloyd asked himself, hurt. "At least Lloyd is nice, funny, polite, generous, caring, and definitely more manly than you, not to mention handsome, bold, and oh." Sheena stopped herself. "So, who's the one exposing your love?" asked Zelos, grinning mischeviously as he propped himself up on his elbow. "Um, uh, ah, well, that is," Sheena stumbled. "Gee, if I didn't know better, I'd say you really like Lloyd," said Zelos. "I like her a lot, too," agreed Lloyd. Sheena blushed, then yelled, "So?! It's not like love's a _bad _thing!" and ran off.

"Now isn't that what I said?" Zelos asked. Lloyd was too busy watching Sheena run to answer him. "Aw, great, now they'll be inseperable," moaned Zelos. "I want some, too!" "Hey, Sheena's mine!" exclaimed Lloyd. "You can have Colette." Zelos eyes gleamed. "Colette is a cute little munchkin, isn't she?" he squealed. "Why don't you want her?" asked Zelos angrily. "She's too close to me," said Lloyd, a little disgusted. "I've known her since birth. It'd be like marrying my sister." Zelos thought a moment. "Seles and me?" he asked himself. "Ewwww," he said, grimacing. "Okay, I see your point." "And who knows?" said Lloyd. "They say opposites attract." "Hey, that's true, I-" Zelos stopped and glared at Lloyd. "What's that supposed to mean?!" "Just what I said!" said Lloyd, laughing and took off. "Why you little!!!" Zelos ran after him.

Raine looked up to see Zelos chasing Lloyd. Zelos seemed upset and Lloyd was laughing. "Men," she sighed. "They never grow up." "Boys will be boys," said Presea. "Where did you hear that?" asked Genis. She pointed. "Ukyo said it," she explained. Raine watched them run unitl Zelos tripped and hit his head. "OW!" he yelled. Raine snorted and crossed her arms. "I suppose it's true," she said with closed eyes.

Zelos stood up and rubbed his head. "Ohh, my beautiful face," he groaned. "Stupid Lloyd! What made me trip anyhow? I'm gonna smash it good for smashing my face! I even bled a little! And I bet there's dirt!" He peered closely at the ground. He saw something large and lumpy half-buried in the dirt at a forty-five degree angle. He pulled it out of the ground easily. It left a perect hole the exact shape of the thing in the barely moist soil. "What is it?" Zelos wondered. He brushed off some dirt and saw dull gray rock mixed with a dull gray metal. Seeing Zelos stare so hard at something made Raine worry, so she went over to him. She looked over his shoulder at the rock. "Hmm," she said. He looked and saw her. "What is it?" he asked, handing over the heavy lump to Raine. She hefted it and looked at it closely. The other began to gather around, seeing that they found something.

"It appears to be just oridinary rock and metal," she said at last. "Is that significant?" asked Lime, speaking up for the first time. "The actual materials are not, but the fact they are together may be," replied Raine, still studying the rock. "What do you mean?" asked Mint curiously. Raine turned the rock over in her hands and looked at the ground. "Well," she said, "finding rock and metal together in a lump isn't always meaningful, but considering our circumstances, and the fact it was found on the surface might indicate-" "A meteorite," finished Genis. A lightbulb clicked on in Mousse's mind. "Can you tell where the main body is?' he asked eagerly.

"Assuming there was a main body," said Regal. "No," said Genis, "if Zelos found it on the surface, the impact couldn't have been too great. The only explanation for its shallowness is that it was a fragment that was thrown off the main meteor when it struck the ground." Raine turned to Zelos. "Where did you find this?" she asked. "Right here," he said, pointing to a small hole in the ground. Raine walked over to it and carefully inserted the rock back inside. "It'll be a while," said Raine as she began to pull out various tools. Genis began to take measurements, and he and his sister began to talk quietly in their own language of math.

The others dispersed and talked quietly amongst themselves while they waited for the siblings to finish their calculations. Ryoga walked up to Ukyo and took her over to a tree, where he talked quietly to her and held her hand. Akane sat in Ranma's embrace. They said nothing, but simply watched the half-elves work. Mousse was smiling as he talked to Shampoo and handed her a flower. She laughed softly and hugged him. Regal and Presea watched Raine and Genis, both of them with more than academic interest. Zelos talked to Colette seriously, without humor or lewdness. Colette stared at him amazedly and nodded her head. She smiled and accepted the gift he gave her. Taro talked casually to Kodachi, who agreed to his statements. Kuno was playing a children's hand game with little Hinako. He seemed more amused than anything. Shinnosuke, Herb, Mint, and Lime, having been left with nothing else to do, played cards and exchanged jokes. Lloyd watched them all for a few minutes, and decided he'd better talk to Sheena.

He found her sitting a few yards away under a tree, toying with Corrine's bell. She didn't seem to notice Lloyd come up. "Do you miss him at times like this?" asked Lloyd somberly. She looked up at him sadly and nodded. He sat down next to her and watched Genis and Raine. "I know it's not the same," he said after a moment, "but maybe you'd be willing to let me help fill the void." Lloyd looked at her. She had put the bell away and was looking at him. She nodded slowly. "Yes, I'd like that," she said. He smiled and placed his arm around her. She hesitantly rested her head on his shoulder. "Do you, uh, miss anyone?" asked Sheena. Lloyd nodded. "Who?" He looked at her, then back up. "My father," he said. Sheena looked up at Lloyd, who looked down at her. "Which one?" she asked. He looked away again. He sighed, looked around, then finally looked back at her. "Both of them," he said at last. "Do you ever wonder what your mother was like?" she asked. "Sometimes," said Lloyd. "Sometimes, like when I get mad at Kratos, I think of her." Sheena was a little confused. "Why?" she asked. He paused again. "Because," he said, "when I think about some of the stuff Kratos did to make me mad, I think about my mom, and wonder why she loved him. Then I realize that she loved him because, although he has his faults, he really is a good person at heart, and everything he does is for the good of others. And then I'm not mad at him anymore, and I start to miss him. And that makes me miss Dirk, too." He blinked back tears.

Sheena resumed her seating position, and Lloyd dropped his arm. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "You once told me it was okay to cry," she said. "Now it's my turn to tell you that. Just cry if you want to." Lloyd sat for a moment, and then a tear trickled down his face. "I miss them so much," he said. "Especially Kratos. Because I know he can't come back." The tears began to roll down his face. Sheena offered her arms and he gripped her waist tightly and hugged her. "Why did he have to leave?!" he choked angrily. "He had his path to take," said Sheena, "and you had yours." "Doen't mean I have to like it," he said. "No, it doesn't," she whispered. She caressed his back as he sobbed into her shoulder. After a minute, he released her and wiped his eyes. "You okay now?" Sheena asked. "Yeah," said Lloyd, and sighed heavily. "Yeah, I'm okay." "Good," said Sheena, "because it looks like they're done."

"So?" asked Mousse when Raine and Genis reached the others. "Were you able to gather anything?" Raine nodded. "Yes," she said. "In fact, we managed to narrow down the search area to a one-mile radius approximately three miles from here." "Wow!" said Ranma. "You guys are brilliant!" "Tell 'em something they don't know!" exclaimed Lloyd. They blushed. "Well then, let's get going," said Mousse shouldering his pack and positioning his bundle under his arm. "Lead the way, Professor Sage." The rest of the group made ready to leave, and Lloyd walked alongside Genis and Sheena when they began to walk.

Lloyd leaned over and whispered in Genis' ear. "You should tell Presea how you feel," said Lloyd. "I don't think you'll be disappointed. I've seen how she looks at you, and I can tell she has feelings for you too." Genis looked at Presea. "You think so?" he asked. Lloyd nodded. "What about you, Sheena?" asked Genis. "Do you think I should tell Presea how I feel about her?" Sheena nodded as well. "I don't think you should hold it in," she said. "When the time is right, you should let her know about your love. Lloyd and I learned that." Genis gasped. "You mean you finally said it?!" he asked. They nodded. "That's great!" he said. He sighed. "Alright. Next time I'm alone with her, I'll say something." Lloyd smiled. "I'm glad," he said.

As they continued on, they encountered more debris and evidence of shrapnel. "It would appear your calculations were correct," said Regal. "It looks that way," agreed Presea. After a few more minutes of walking they came upon a tall ridge. "The crater," explained Raine. "Let's go," said Ranma. He nimbly leapt up the slope, and the others followed likewise. There was a group gasp as the party reached the top. "Wow," said Colette. "That can't be, can it?" said Raine in awe. "It is," said Genis. "Is what?" asked Akane, not taking her eyes off the land in front of her.

"When I felt the stone, I noticed a faint trace of extra mana in the rock," said Genis. "I just ignored it, but this..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "There's no doubt what this is," said Raine. "But," said Genis, looking at his sister, "how is that possible? I didn't think it existed here. Unless our worlds are really that entwined, it doesn't seem possible." "Likely," said Regal, "It's not likely. But it is possible. The proof is right there." "Wait a minute," said Kodachi, holding up her hand. "What are you talking about?" "What's mana?" asked Hinako. "Is it like ki?" "I forgot," said Genis, hitting his forehead. "You don't know anything about our world." "No, mana is not like ki," said Raine. "Not exactly. Mana is the source and essence of life, at least in our world. It is what makes life live. It is more essential to life in our world than water is. It's actual form, however, when concentrated, is similar to ki. And when you concentrate it even more, it actually takes on a solid form. That meteorite there contains a lot of highly concentrated mana, which gives of a purplish glow. Mana also enables people like Genis and me to use spells. Although our spells aren't like what you've told me about. No, our spells aren't evil and demonic, and most real spells are actually more physical manifestations than anything else. Show them, Genis."

Genis pulled out his kendama. He closed his eyes and began to swing the kendama ball back and forth. A red circle of runic symbols appeared around him and began to rotate. Genis opened his eyes. The ball landed on the top kendama cup. He raised the kendama high. "Fireball!" he yelled. A trio of flaming projectiles burst from the air in front of the kendama and flew off into the night sky. They arched through the air and finally exploded after a few seconds. "Oooo," said Hinako. "Your fireworks are cool!" Genis blushed. "They're not fireworks!" he said. "They're weapons!" "It's alright dude, we know," said Zelos, patting him on the back. Genis suddenly straightened, as if he had been poked. "How did I do that?" he asked mysteriously. "Huh?" said Lloyd. "I thought there was no mana here for me to use," said Genis. "There's that rock..." "That's nowhere near close enough for me to use." "I guess it means there is mana here, after all," said Colette. "Yeah," said Genis, still a little weirded out.

"So then, what does that rock have to do with anything?" asked Ranma impatiently. "Well, that rock could have probably come from only one source," said Regal. "And we thought that that source didn't exist here," said Colette. "But if our worlds are really as intertwined as we think," said Presea, "then it's possible it could have crossed over some how." "So what is main mana source?" asked Shampoo. "It's called Derris-Kharlan," said Lloyd. "It's a comet made almost entirely of mana. It's where an organization of half-elves that evolved using special Exspheres live. They're called Cruxis, and they deceived the people of our two worlds into believing they were a divine association of angels protecting the Goddess Martel. Like we said earlier, the real purpose behind the world regeneration was to keep Mithos' sister Martel alive until a suitable body for her could be found. The real Goddess Martel actually has nothing to do with Cruxis or Mithos. But the people were not wrong to believe in Cruxis. Everyone needs hope, needs their beliefs. Otherwise challenges would seem insurmountable and life meaningless. But even though we exposed Cruxis, that doesn't mean they don't stop believing in the Goddess. And I guess we all believe in her. I dunno about you."

Mousse pondered for a moment. "That was well said, Lloyd," said Mousse. "You're right. Whether true or not, our beliefs are what keep us going. It took me a lot longer to appreciate and respect that than it has taken you. You're very wise for your age, Lloyd." "Hehe, thanks," said Lloyd. "Now if only you could be wise when you wanted to," chuckled Genis. "Hey, shut up, Genis!" Lloyd said playfully and tackled him. Mousse laughed and shook his head. He sighed deeply. "What shall we do next?" he asked the group. "It will be dark soon," said Raine. "I suggest we rest somewhere below the ridge and head in tomorrow morning." "Any objections?" asked Mousse and looked around. Everyone shook their heads no. "Alright, then let's go make camp," he said. "Lloyd, Genis, knock it off and come help set up camp!" yelled Sheena. "Coming!" said Lloyd and got off of Genis' back. "Dammit, Lloyd, why do you gotta play so rough?" asked Genis, rubbing his back. "I wouldn't if you wouldn't make fun of me so much and learned to shut your mouth!" said Lloyd. Genis looked hurt. "Aw, come on man, you know I'm joking!" Lloyd said, tousling Genis' long white locks. "If it really bothers you I'll try to remember to go easy on you." "Thanks Lloyd," said Genis. "I'll try to remember to think before I insult you again!" "Hey!" said Lloyd. "Just kidding," said Genis, slinking off to his sister's protection.

Within half an hour camp was set up, and Lloyd almost had a fire going. Well, sort of. "Dammit, why won't it light?" grumbled Lloyd. "Did you remember to use tinder instead of trying to light the logs?" asked Genis. "Duh!" said Lloyd. "When I learn something important, I don't forget it! At least, not that fast." He sighed and stood up. "The leaves and grass won't light. I wonder why, though? They seem to be dry enough. Humph." he kicked a rock at his feet into a bush. "Could you try a dose of your fire on it?" asked Mint, who had been watching. "I suppose," said Genis. "I'll have to be reeeeaaaallly careful though." He drew out a tiny amount of mana and focused it into flame. Once he had it, he aimed it at the wood and fired it. A large burst of fire rocketed out of his kendama and smashed into the wood, lighting the logs instantly. "Nice shot!" said Lloyd. "Now if only we had some hot dogs...." Lloyd wandered off in search of some food, and Genis followed him.

Genis could not help but watch Presea. She was laying on a sleeping bag, staring at the stars. Genis swallowed, his heart thumping as he watched. Lloyd noticed. "Hey, uh, I heard Presea's volunteered to be the night watch tonight," said Lloyd with a nudge to Genis' ribs. Genis spun and grabbed Lloyd's shoulders. "You'd better not be screwing around with me!" he warned. "Don't worry!" said Lloyd as he held his hands up. "I wouldn't dare challenge the guy who could stick a blade of lightning through me when he's pissed off!" Genis let him go. "You're really serious?" he asked. Lloyd made a sign over his heart indicating he was telling the truth. "I wouldn't lie to you about something serious like this, Genis," he said soberly. "You're my friend. I want you to be happy. You should talk to her." Genis nodded. "Ok," he said, "I'll do it. Tonight I'll tell Presea how I feel. Wish me luck." Lloyd raised a glass to Genis. "May all th eluck in the world be with you tonight," said Lloyd. "I'll be praying for you, buddy." "Thanks Lloyd," said Genis, and went off to organize his thoughts.

Genis stared at the smoldering fire from under his sleeping bag. He looked around at the others. They were all asleep. Time to make my move, he thought. He quietly got out of the bag and moved soundlessly over to the log where Presea sat, staring off into the distance. He sat down next to her. She jumped up, her hand going for her ax. Then she saw who it was, and her hand dropped. "Oh, Genis," she said. "You, uh, startled me." Genis smiled. "Sorry," he said. "Listen, can I talk to you for a minute?" She sat down. "Sure," said Presea. "What do you want to talk about?" Genis swallowed and looked at his feet for a moment. He had gone over this a thousand times. He had refined it down to the last detail. But when it came right down to it, he was so nevous he had o hold his hands to keep them from shaking.

Finally, he gathered all the courage he had, and looked at Presea. "I'm not good with words," he said. "I find it best to say exactly what I mean without any ado. Presea, I love you. I've always loved you, and I want to be with you as long as I can." Presea looked at him."I," she began. "Shh," said Genis, putting a finger to her lips. "Don't think. Just tell me how you feel." Presea looked at him, her eyes glassy sapphires. "I, I love you too," she said. "But, I mean, what about age? Doesn't it bother you?" Genis shook his head sadly. "It's not how old you are on the outside but on the inside that counts," he said. "Look at it this way: Our bodies are both young. We'll both grow some more. And as for your age, you'll probably live longer physically than most other humans, because you did not age during your lost time. And as for me, well. As for me, I'm too old on the inside. I feel so much mature than the first day I set out with Lloyd and Colette, even though it's only been a year since then." "Yes, well," said Presea, looking at her feet, "what about your life span?" "What about it?" said Genis. "Presea, look at me." She looked into his eyes and he grasped her hands.

"It doesn't matter how old I'll get," he said. "The thing is, anyone could die at any time. But besides that, no matter how long I live after you die, I"ll always be in love with you. I could never love another. So please, let the time between now and then, at least, be filled with your love." Presea sighed. "Oh, Genis," she said, closing her eyes and leaning forward. "Presea!" he said. He kissed her lips, and held her tightly to his body, and she held him back. He looked a her, a little stunned. "Your kiss tastes just like I dreamt it would," he whispered. "Same here," she said, and pulled him back in. She kissed him again, tenderly, passionately. "I love you, Genis," she whispered into his ear as she hugged him closely. She smiled with joy. Suddenly her eyes flew open again and she released him. "What's wrong?" he asked. "Shh!" she said, her ears on alert as she scanned the surrounding foliage. He followed suit.

"Listen!" she whispered. "Do you hear that?" Genis heard it, a faint rustle that didn't quite match the wind. "Should we wake the others?" Genis whispered. She shook her head. "Not yet," Presea said. She then tiptoed closer to where the noise was coming from. There was suddenly a whizzing noise behind her, followed by a gasp from Genis, and the first thing that popped into her head was the word, "Distraction." She turned around in time to see a rope tighten around his waist and jerk him back into the foliage. "Intruders!" screamed Presea. She lunged in the direction Genis went and took a huge horizontal swipe with her ax. It passed through several massive trees, felling them instantly. Presea thought she heard someone swear in surprise. The others were already up. She raced into the forest after Genis. Lloyd soon came after her when he realized Genis was gone, as did Raine, Sheena, Colette, and, for some reason, Kodachi. Presea, who was leading, suddenly came to halt. "I lost them," she said. Colette listened carefully. She pointed with her finger; the person was hiding in that direction. Presea understood. She intended to be the one to get Genis back. "Fan out and search," said Lloyd. Presea indicated with her hand she wanted him to come along.

They pretended to methodically search the forest, while Presea and Lloyd slowly, indirectly approached the attacker. Finally, Presea could hear it too. He/she/it was in a bush next to Lloyd. Apparently Lloyd knew too, because he indicated he would take care of it. She nodded her assent. He walked in front of it, acting as though he never saw the bush. After he passed it, he stood up and sighed. "I guess we lost it," he said, winking at Presea. "Let's regroup with the others and see if they found anything." The group responded, moving out,back towards camp at a sign from Presea. As soon as Lloyd was sure he was out of sight of the bush, he ducked behind a tree and quietly drew his Kusanagi Blade. There was a rustling sound, and Lloyd saw a figure emerge from the bush and head towards him. He waited until it passed by and then lashed out at it with his sword. There was a cry and it stumbled face first into he ground. Genis was on the ground, knocked out and gagged.

Lloyd was suddenly aware of other presences. He did the only thing he could think of: he picked up the body from the ground and pressed his sword against its throat. "Don't come any closer, or this one gets it!" he said threateningly. He desperately hoped that these guys had some respect for life and weren't unfeeling monsters that didn't care if one of their own died. He also hoped they spoke his language. It seemed as though the others hesitated. Then one took a step forward. He swiveled to face it and pressed the sword against his captive's neck harder, just enough to draw blood. Suddenly there was an unexpected noise from his captive; it was crying. "Please," the female said, "don't kill me. We didn't mean any harm. I don't want to die. Guys, please, do what he asks." Then she began to cry again, a pitiful sound that tore at his heart and made him regret hurting his friend's captor. Then he remembered what they had done, and steeled himself. "If you didn't mean any harm," he growled, "then why did you kidnap my friend?!" She continued to sob. "We'll tell you," said another female voice, this one more mature, obviously a bit older, "as soon as you release our friend." "How do I know you won't murder us the second you have her back?" he asked angrily. There was a pause.

"How about this, huh?" said Lloyd. "I pick up my friend, and take him and your friend back to my camp with me, and you come after I do? Then we're all fair." There was another pause, during which all Lloyd could hear was the thumping of his heart and the sobbing of the girl. "It is acceptable," said the voice. Lloyd slowly bent down and picked Genis up, putting his small friend over his houlder. He never took his sword's tip off the girl's neck. Then he was up again, and held the blade against her throat again. He slowly backed up, and she backed up with him. He perceived that some of the figures moved to make room for him. He never took his eyes off them, all the way back to camp. He always kept his eyes on them as they followed.

Lloyd emerged at last into the light of a rekindled fire. The others sat around, wating, their weapons drawn. "Lloyd, what's going on?" asked Colette. "I don't know," he said, "but it seems we've got some talking to do." "Talking is nice," said the girl tearfully. Mousse jerked his head up. "No," he said softly. He got up and maneuvered around to see the girl's face. "What the hell?" he said. It was Xiaoxing. "Mousse?!" said a voice from out of the woods. Mousse stared at the young girl's face, and found himself irrevocably drawn back to that day, only four years ago, when he fought the Shinsengumi girls.

There was a sharp _whok_ as the tip of Mousse's rod connected with the underside of Megumi's chin. She stumbled backwards and the others rushed in. He held his rod horizontal against his chest and dealt two blows each to Asuka and Ryoko with a back and forth motion of his staff. Mousse rolled out of the way as Xiaoxing's rope sailed past his head. He put his rod in and the rope twirled around it and caught. He jerked his rod back and snapped it forward again, tossing Xiaoxing into the air. The cord unwound and she landed deftly on her feet and began to quickly wind her rope up again. He saw Asuka heading for him and jammed his pole into the ground. He nimbly scaled it, hands alone, until he was raised erect in the air with his hands on the top of the rod. Upside down, Mousse saw the ninja approach him. Just as Asuka lunged to swipe the pole out from under him, he pulled it out from under her. She stumbled forward, and Mousse raised the pole high above him in the air before he brought it crashing down upon her. She crumbled under the powerful blow. Turning her over with a flip of his staff, a dealt a fast hit to her temple and she was out cold. Distracted by dealing with Asuka, Megumi managed to deal a rain of quick hits on Mousse's abdomen with her bare fists, and Ryoko topped it off with a powerful vertical slash with her wooden sword that knocked him to the ground.

He rolled backwards and was on his feet in an instant. Megumi attempted to smash her hand into his head while he was down, but hit the floor instead. Mousse took this oppurtunity to deal her a good, solid smash on the back of her skull. She groaned in pain, and he finished it by pressing his staff into her gut and driving her all the way into the wall. With another temple blow, she was out. Ryoko rushed up and began to hack furiously at him. He dodged or blocked them easily, using small movements that wasted little energy. He saw his opening; she left her stomach relatively unguarded. Maybe, he thought. In a momentary shift in her attacks, he swiftly dealt a hard strike to her stomach with the end of his rod which caused her to double over. He moved his staff down and put it between her legs. Then he lifted up, and his entire rod was pressing against her body, and he threw her over his shoulder with a massive spatula style flip. Just then Xiaoxing's rope wound itself around his waist and she pulled him in. Her hands, however, were both pulling. He saw only one way out of this. Again, he put the rod against his attacker's belly, but it was parallel to her body, not perpendicular as it was last time. Faced with such a light opponent, his next move was easier than it would have been with any of the others, and, thankfully, it would cause less damage. Mousse wanted to inflict as little damage as possible on his opponents, especially since they were all women. With his rod against Xiaoxing's stomach, he began to spin. Holding his rod at one end, he spun it in a giant circle. It kept going faster and faster.

Xiaoxing was trapped at the edge of this centrifuge Mousse had created, and was completely at his mercy. Mousse watched the rope as it unwound, unwound, and unwound until it finally left him. He drove his heels into the ground and stopped as hard as he could. This launched Xiaoxing across the room, towards the wall next to Aoi, who, Mousse noted, had not done anything yet. In the split second between the time Mousse stopped and the time Xiaoxing hit the wall, Aoi decided to intervene. She stepped in front of her small friend as she hurtled towards Aoi. Aoi extended her arms and caught Xiaoxing in her arms, forcefully driving them both into the stone wall. They slid to the floor. Xiaoxing moaned, and retched, vomiting on the floor between their legs. Then she slumped to the side and did not move. Aoi gently set her aside and drew her wooden sword for the first time. Ryoko had recovered from the throw and was on Mousse again. Aoi then came forward to aid her captain. The two of them worked together admirably, responding to and coordinating with each other. At some point they pressed him against a wall and together performed a huge vertical slash. The attack broke his rod in half, and now he wielded the two halves as twin swords.

They continued to attack and parry, each one intent on wearing his or her opponent down. Mousse finally recognized he'd have to use force. At the first chance he got, making sure he was near one wall, broke into a run for he opposite wall. Aoi and Ryoko gave uncertain chase. When Mousse was five feet from the wall he jumped, and spun. Body facing the ground, head looking towards his opponents, he planted his feet firmly on the wall like a swimmer and shoved off. They realized too late what he was doing. Aoi said nothing; she simply pushed Ryoko out of the way. Aoi knew she could not dodge in time. Mousse kept his weapons at his chest until he reached his target. Then, with a broad swipe with is twin weapons, he sent Aoi across the room. Mousse landed, and balanced one of his swords like a spear. Holding the blunt edge forward, he carefully aimed and launched the wood at Aoi. It smacked her in the forehead before she could react, and she was out. That only left Ryoko. He was not sure if he could win, the way things stood. So, he took his two rod halves and flung them at a wall. They shattered inot hundreds of fragments. He cracked his knuckles and held up his fists. There was no smile upon his lips, only the straight face of a true warrior, betraying no emotions, only readiness for battle. The same look adorned Ryoko's face.

Mousse punched and kicked at Ryoko. She blocked the hard hits and struck back with a fierce two handed swing. Mousse blocked it with one hand and punched Ryoko in the face with the other. She staggered, but did not fall. Again, she lunged at him. He lifted himself bodily into the air. He grasped her shirt in mid-flip. He landed behind Ryoko and threw her in front of him. She skidded on the floor and got up. Mousse attacked fast with multiple hits. Ryoko ducked and dodged and suddenly drove her sword inyo his chest with a powerful thrust. She landed several more hits on his face and many on his chest and abdomen. He finally broke away from her attacks. He wiped the blood dripping from his face, but more flowed steadily. Then, with a flurry of fists and feet, he tested Ryoko's guard to its max. For a split second she let it down, and he tore through it. Unable to block, she was pummeled down by his rock hard fists and steel feet. The last blow to her face blew her back. She stayed down for a while. Mousse watched to see if she would admit defeat. But it seemed she was only gathering her strength, for she unexepected leapt up and smashed her knuckled into his face with tremendous force. He fell down, amazed by her strength. It was a struggle to get back to his feet even. But once he was up, he was alright. Ryoko stood there, a bizarre look on her face. He raced forward, fist up. Her eyes closed, and she began to fall. Mouse was upon her quickly, but his fist opened and he caught her fall. Her eyes went dark, Mousse slung her over his shoulder, and he raced to the hospital.

Little did he know it, but Ryoko was now thinking of the exact same incident.

Ryoko opened her eyes slowly, painfully. Her vision was blurry, then settled into some sort of focus. One eye was swollen almost completely shut. She heard the rhythmic beep of a machine, and realized she was in a hospital. How did I get here? she wondered. She tried to move her head, but just a slight movement sent streaks of white hot pain tearing up her neck and into her head. She sucked in breath between clenched teeth. Her entire body ached. It felt as though she had been in a blender after being beat up by a gang of boxers. Moreover, she didn't remember anything about fighting, and that was what scared her the most. She tried to raise herself into a sitting position, but a hand quickly pressed on her breast and gently forced her back down. The owner of the hand stood up over her, so she could see him. The first thing Ryoko noticed was his eyes, because they were red from tears. He smiled faintly. "Don't move," he said softly. "You've taken quite a beating." Ryoko smiled weakly and looked at him. "Looks like you have too," she said hoarsely, taking in his cuts and bruises. The young man seemed confused. "Don't you remember?" he asked her, brushing his long black hair out of his face. "My name's Mousse," he said. "Mousse," she repeated. That name triggered a landslide of memories, which came flooding back to her in a rush.

"I remember everything now," she whispered. She remembered the fight, the final pucnch she threw, and then her feeling of extreme exhaustion and defeat when she saw him recover from it. She also remembered well how gently he caught her. She realized she had been staring off into space and then moved her eyes to one side. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, exhaling loudly. She managed to rub her eyes gingerly with her left arm, which hurt less than her right. "So you brought me here?" she said. He nodded. She yawned. "God, it felt like I died back there," she moaned. She glanced at him and he averted his eyes. He seemed uncomfortable. "What's wrong?" she asked. He said nothing. "Come on, tell me," she prodded. "You did," he said quietly. "Huh?" she said, confused. "You died that night, on the fight floor," he said, looking at the ground. She stared at him, shocked. "They said, when I brought you to the ER, you were what they called "clinically dead." You had been for twelve minutes. It took me twelve minutes to get to the hospital. They said," he paused, coughing, wiping his eyes, "they said there was no hope for you. I insisted, and, and...." He seemed at a loss for words. He blinked back tears, and said, "I don't know what happened in that room, but somehow, you survived. They resuscitated you against all odds. I killed you, Ryoko. I knowingly endangered you to the point of death. I can't live with that."

Ryoko shook her head sadly. "Mousse, come here," she said. He came over and knelt next to her. "It's alright," she said. He shook his head. "No, it's not, I-" She held a finger to his lips. "It's alright, Mousse. I knowingly endangered myself. I knew before we fought, there was the possiblility of death. I haven't fought someone like you in a long time, and for that I thank you." Something rung in her mind like a bell. Mousse noticed it in her eyes. "What?" he asked. "The others, are they, uh?" she asked, frightened. He smiled again. "They're all fine," he said. "They'll be out of the hospital in two days. Perhaps three days for Xiaoxing. Seems I hurt her insides a lot with my centrifuge attack." His face grew grim. "You however," he said somberly, "will need to stay here for a minimum of three months. Doctor's orders." She swore softly, and smiled. He didn't. "You shouldn't have fought me," he said. "And you?" she asked. "How are you?" "They gave me a few stitches and some bandages," he said tonelessly. "Well, at least you'll have time to learn everything I know," Ryoko said. She indicated the room with her arm. "Looks like I'm gonna be here a while." Mousse grinned. "You're lucky," he said. "Three month break, all expenses paid. All you could ask for is for it to be fun." Ryoko laughed.

"So what did you tell them happened?" she asked. Mousse looked at the ceiling. "Oh, I said it was a gang attack and I managed to save you guys before you got beat up too bad," he said, smiling mischeviously. Ryoko rolled her eyes. "Did Midori help you carry us?" she asked. "Yeah," said Mousse. "What was your story for her?" Ryoko asked him. "Date," he said. "Came back from the movies and ran into you guys. Actually had to kiss to get the doctors to believe my story." Ryoko gawked. "I'm serious!" said Mousse. "He's right!" said Midori, who had been sitting on the other side of Ryoko and had gone completely unnoticed by either of them. How does she do that? Ryoko wondered. Judging from his confused expression, Mousse wanted to know the same thing.

And so, Mousse visited Ryoko in the hospital, along with at least on of the Shinsengumi girls, and he learned from her literally everything she knew that was of value or interest to him. Mousse still could not forgive himself for hat he had done, and so in exchange he taught Ryoko everything she wanted to know from him, as well as any of the other girls who were interested. Three days after Ryoko was released from the hospital, Mousse was forced to leave on urgent business. The Shinsengumi had all agreed he was like family to them, and they promised to never forget each other. After that heart-wrenching day, Mousse was gone from their lives, and they from his. One thing led to another, and Mousse was always kept busy. They never saw each other again.

Until now.


	4. An Army of Oneor TwentySeven

An Army of One...or Twenty Seven

Xiaoxing's shrill cry of despair snapped Mousse back to reality. Mousse saw Lloyd's hand tense on the sword. The others watched uncertainly, nervously, afraid. "Stop!" shouted Mousse. "Huh?" said Lloyd. Mousse walked over to Lloyd and grasped his shoulder. "Put your sword away, Lloyd," he said. "They mean us no harm." "But they," began Lloyd. "Trust me," said Mousse firmly. Lloyd hesitantly obeyed. "Release her," said Mousse. Lloyd let the frightened girl go. Mousse examined her neck. "No permanenet damage," he said after a moment. "Some bleeding, superficial cut, no deep wound. You'll be fine, Xiaoxing." The girl's eyes sparked with recognition. "Mousse?!" she said incredulously. He nodded. He tood up and sighed. "My apologies, ladies," he said, "but you must admit you left my friend little recourse in the manner of your arrival. Who of you can say they would not have done the same in his position? Don't worry, we're not going to try anything. Come out here."

After a moment, five more figures stepped forward into the dim firelight. They were all women. Mousse could not keep a straight face. His mouth broke into a wide grin. The women could not keep their apparent happiness contained either. Mousse stepped forward to a reddish brown haired woman, about twenty. They warmly embraced each other, hugging each other tightly. "Ah, Ryoko, my dear, it has been far too long," whispered Mousse. Ryoko said nothing, attempting to hold back tears. He moved over to a brown haired woman with pink highlights, around the same age as Ryoko. Mousse hugged her next. "Megumi-chan, you're looking well!" said Mousse. "You've taken good care of yourself, I see." She nodded. but said nothing. Mousse went to a pink-tipped brown haired girl, whose long locks fell into her face, completely obscuring her eyes. It was hard to tell her age, but she looked a bit younger than Ryoko and Megumi. Mousse hugged her and said, "Midori! How are you? Keeping the team together, huh?" She too nodded, and blushed. He next embraced a dark-haired ninja woman, a mask covering her mouth. She looked in her mid-twenties. "Asuka, Asuka, Asuka," said Mousse. "Have you become a true ninja yet?" She shook her head sadly. He came to a red-haired girl, who seemed a bit older than all the others, but it may just have been her demeanor. Mousse hugged her. She hugged him too, hesitantly at first, but soon giving in to her emotions. "Aoi, my delicate rose," said Mousse. "You're the same as ever."

Finally he went over to the small girl that Lloyd had captured, the young blonde. She happily hugged him and exclaimed, "So good to see Mousse again!" The other women smiled at this. Mousse laughed as he swung her around in a circle and set her back down. The group just watched Mousse as he completed his greetings of these women who had come out of nowhere. Sheena thought, Well, come to think of it, we sorta came out of nowhere too. "Why, Xiaoxing, you haven't aged a day!" Mousse said, a little surprised. Xiaoxing said nothing. The other women seemed uncomfortable. "What?" said Mousse. "Don't tell me I've hit too close to the mark on her? I didn't mean it like that." Ryoko shifted on her feet. "No, the problem is exactly how you said it," she said. "Xiaoxing has not aged a day. Not for four years." Mousse staggered, shocked. "Wha-what?" he asked.

Presea snapped her head up. "What caused this to occur?" asked Presea. "We're not sure," said Megumi, "but we assume it has something to do with that thing around her neck. Show them, Xiao." Xiaoxing unbuttoned her coat a few buttons and pulled the sides apart, exposing her neck and the center of her upper chest. There, about halfway down her breastbone, was a black metallic object. It was nearly circular, and seemed to be directly attached to her skin. The entire group from Sylvarant and Tethe'alla gasped in surprise. "It's an Exsphere!" exclaimed Lloyd. "No, it's not. It's a Cruxis Crystal!" "So, then, perhaps her condition is similar to my previous experience?" suggested Presea. "You mean how you stopped aging?" asked Shinnosuke. Raine nodded. "Yes," she said. "The same is probably the case for Xiaoxing. Lloyd, perhaps you could turn that refined piece of inhibitor ore into a Key Crest for her?" Lloyd nodded. "Yeah," he said. "Hey everyone, I've noticed that there's a massive amount of inhibitor ore down in the crater. I think I"ll take this oppurtunity to go get some, and make Key Crests for all of you to go with your Exspheres."

Ranma looked at Mousse. "Okay," said Ranma, "but take someone with you. We don't want you to get caught alone." Lloyd nodded. "Do you want me to get some for them, too?" asked Lloyd, indicating the recent intruders. "Yes, please," said Mousse. "What's going on?' asked Asuka. "Well, why don't we explain it to you while we're waiting for Lloyd to return?" suggested Raine. "That sounds good," said Ryoko. "And perhaps you can tell us why you tried to kidnap me?" said Genis, not without a little bitterness. "Of course," said Ryoko. "We'd be happy to." Genis did not expect that. "Alright, I think I'll go ahead and go with Lloyd," said Sheena. "I've already heard the first story. And you can tell me theirs later." They all nodded. "If you don't mind, I think I'll go too," said Zelos. Lloyd was okay with it, but he was afraid that Sheena would want to be alone with him and wouldn't want Zelos around. To his surprise she spoke up and said, "Sure, Zelos. Let's go." She didn't say it sarcastically, or rudely. She meant it. Lloyd was finding out women were a lot harder to figure out than he ever imagined. "Okay, we'll be back in a little while," said Lloyd. He, Zelos, and Sheena walked quietly out into the night through the wall of trees.

Sheena reached into a pocket a took out a flask. Unscrewing it, she took a long drink. She sighed, smiled, and looked into the sky. Sheena noticed the guys looking at her. She offered the flask. "Want some?" she asked. "What is it?" asked Zelos, tenatively. "Ranma gave it to me," she explained. "It's some kind of alcohol. Called tequila." "Tequila, huh?" said Zelos, taking the flask and sniffing it. "Smells good," he said, and hesitantly took a swig. He swallowed it and nodded his head to one side. He coughed a little. "Pretty good," he said. "I've had some stronger, though. I don't think I want any more." "Can I try some?" asked Lloyd. Sheena and Zelos looked at him doubtfully. "It might put some hairs on your chest," said Zelos. "Are you sure?" asked Sheena. "I mean, it's pretty strong. And you're only-" "Who cares how old I am?!" said Lloyd. "Doesn't matter here, anyhow. No drinking laws." Sheena shrugged, and handed him the flask. He sniffed it. "Humph," he said. Sheena nudged Zelos. "This outta be good!" she whispered to him.

Lloyd took a sip. Sheena and Zelos waited eagerly. Nothing happened. Lloyd looked at the flask appraisingly. "It's okay," he said. They fell over. "Wh-what?" said Zelos. Lloyd downed a few swallows of it and wiped his mouth. "Dirk makes better stuff," Lloyd said, tossing the closed flask into Sheena's hands. "I forgot you were raised by a dwarf," Sheena grumbled. They came over the ridge. The meteor bathed the crater in an unearthly violet light. Zelos shivered. "Let's do this fast, okay?" he said.

They slid down the inner slope and brushed themselves off. "You know what to look for, right?" aske Lloyd. "Yeah," they said unanimously. They walked in a circle around te crater wall, searching and collecting suitable pieces of ore to make into Key Crests. "So, what do you think is going on with those strange women?" asked Sheena as she examined the rocks. "Ohhhh, they were gorgeous!" said Zelos. "Besides that," said Sheena. "I dunno," said Lloyd. "Mousse seems to know them, and I think a few of the others do too. I think those are those Shinsengumi girls they talked about earlier." "I wonder what they wanted with Genis?" mused Sheena. "Yeah, why didn't they try to take me instead?" whined Zelos. They ignored him. "Well, at any rate, I'm sure they'll work out something," said loyd. "They seemed to share a really close friendship with Mousse. What I want to know is why he's friends with them, and what was going on with them kidnapping Genis." "I'm sure we'll find out when we get back," said Sheena.

"Don't you mean, if we get back?" said Zelos in a trembling voice. "What are you talking about?" asked Sheena, annoyed. He pointed. They followed his finger. Lloyd's jaw dropped. "What the hell?!"

"And that's why we trying to kidnap that guy," said Ryoko. The group nodded. Colette cocked her head to the side. "Did anyone, just hear that?" she asked. "Hear what?" asked Taro. "That scream," said Colette. "It sounded like Sheena!" "Damn," said Mousse. "We're on it!" said Ryoko. They were gone in a flash. Taro stood up. "I'm going to follow them," he said. "Alright, but take this," said Mousse. He handed Taro an ornately carved bone horn. "Sound this if you need help, and we'll all come," he said. Taro nodded, and dashed off.

He huffed as he climbed up the steep hill. Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw when he reached the top. An entire army stood before him. But this army was unlike any he had ever seen before. It seemed to be an army of pure evil. They were simply monsters, horrid beings that scarred the mind with their appearance. Taro knew the beasts could be killed, but he also knew that those down in the crater could easily be overcome by force of numbers. So, placing the horn on his lips, he sounded the call. Then, he dashed down to help.

The Shinsengumi and the three otherworlders had managed to hold their own for now, but Taro knew they would be soon overwhelmed. A nightmarish skeleton beast, twelve feet high, loomed in front of the brave warriors. It raised one of its four weapons, clutched by one of its four arms, to slice into Lloyd's flesh. Taro leapt and bashed the arm apart with one of his iron nunchaku. The creature turned to face him. It stabbed at him with wicked swords, piercing the ground as they plunged downward. Taro jumped through its arms and dealt a crushing blow to its skull. The skull shattered and the skeleton collapsed.

The others appeared over the ridge and rushed down the lip to aid their friends. Between all twenty-seven of them, they made a formidable fighting force. They slayed masses of fiends, cutting them down and protecting each. However, their effort seemed for naught. No matter how many they cut down, more would appear in their place. They continued to fight, now in a circle around the mana boulder, and desperately tried to think of something. Sheena wiped the sweat off her brow. She strained her eyes to see n the dark. Darkness...

She had an idea. I just hope this works, she thought fervently. Ranma sliced through the neck of another monster. He looked over to see Sheena standing still, her eyes closed, whispering quickly and intensely. Her voice suddenly boomed, large and resounding through the forest. "Spirits of light!" she commanded. "I summon thee, Aska and Luna!" There was a rumbling of the ground and there appeared in a swirl of yellow cloud, a fiery two headed bird, and the form of a woman sitting upon a crescent moon. "What do you wish?" asked the woman. "Cast thy holy light upon these beasts of darkness!" yelled Sheena. "As you wish," said the woman. She nodded to the bird, and held out her hand. The bird flapped its wings, and suddenly a blinding light came forth from their presence and illuminated the entire crater in a pure white light.

There was a mass moan, a horrible screeching noise as the army of terror monsters cried out in searing pain. The head of one monster near Ryoko throbbed, and burst like an overripe tomato, spattering black fluids upon her. One by one, each of the gruesome creatures suffered a grisly death, and the group of humans, and half-elves, shielded their eyes from the sight. The light went out, and they looked back up. There was nothing left to indicate anything had been in the crater, nothing besides distrubed dirt, as if the light had burned away all the flesh of the evil things. "It is done," said the woman on the crescent, and she and the two-headed firebird vanished.

"That was amazing, Sheena!" exclaimed Herb. "What did you do?1" asked Midori in astonishment. "Heh," said Sheena, "I'm a summoner. What do you think I do?" "We don't know much about things from your world," Akane reminded her. "Well, you see," said Sheena, "In our world there are things called Summon Spirits. They are genderless beings that exist as guides and guards for the world. Most often, as you saw, they assume a physical shape with a gender so that they easier for mortals to deal with. To be able to call upon a Summon Spirit, one instructed in the art of summoning must form a pact with them. A Summon Spirit may only have one summoner at a time. Pacts are formed when the Summon Spirit agrees to a vow the pact-maker makes. The summoner may then call upon the spirit to aid him or her when necessary. But if the pact-maker breaks his vow, then he or she cannot call upon that spirit. In some cases, in fact, in all of my cases, a pact-maker may find the Summon Spirit he desires to make a pact with already has a pact. In that case, the pact-maker can hope the previous pact-maker has broken his vow or died. Otherwise, about the only way to get the spirit to annul its pact and make a new one is to fight and defeat it. All of my Summon Spirits were defeated by us, and now I can ask them to help us, even in this world, apparently. Also, all of my Summon Spirits, save for Maxwell, are Guardians of the Seals."

The earthlings took this in. "What are 'Guardians of the Seals'?" asked Aoi softly. "In the former form of our world," answered Raine, "there were two seperate worlds: Sylvarant, and Tethe'alla. Four mana links, or seals, were guarded by Summon Spirits, and connected the two worlds. These links served as a cage for the Great Seed, so that Martel, who was fused with the Seed, would be protected. When we made pacts with Summon Spirits on two ends of the mana links, the connection was severed. A 'bar' of that 'cage' was removed. And as we said earlier, that was what allowed the Renegades to give mana to the Seed via the Mana Cannon. And, you know what happens from there." The Shinsengumi stared blankly, and raised their hands. "Uh, we don't...." said Ryoko. Lloyd sighed. "Don't tell me we've got to give them a history lesson, too!" he complained.

Mousse thought a moment. "I apologize to everyone," said Mousse, "as what I suggest means a lack of sleep for everyone, but I think we should move. Once again, we have been shown we aren't as safe as we think. I saw a tunnel leading into a mineshaft over there." He pointed to a small doorway in the wall of the crater. "I think we should head in that way. We can talk on the way." There was a general groan of exhaustion from everyone. "Did you get our stuff?" asked Genis. "Yes, we have it," said Ryoga, handing Lloyd their bags. "There are no substitutes for a good night's rest," said Zelos, going through the bags with Raine, "but gels are pretty good for giving you your edge back." With some help from Colette and Raine, Zelos distributed blue Miracle Gels to the group. "Whoa!" said Ryoko when she finished hers. "Man, I haven't felt this good in forever!" "Hehe, my face tingles!" said Xiaoxing, rubbing her cheeks.

"Alright, everyone, let's get going," said Mousse. They entered the tunnel, and were plunged into immediate darkness. "Uh, we didn't pack anything for something like this, did we?" Ranma asked Mousse. "Nope," he replied. "Nothing." "Don't worry, we've gotcha covered," said Genis. There was a moment when all that could be heard was a rustling sound as Genis looked in his bag for something and brought it out. "Got it!" he said. There was a sharp _crack-hiss _sound as he struck a match. He covered it with his hand and set it to the wick of a candle. "That's not very bright," said Shinnosuke disdainfully. "Watch," said Genis.

After a few moments of burning steadily, the flame suddenly grew bright and intense, and the entire candle melted. The group closed their eyes and held up their hands. When they lowered their arms they were surprised to see the entire shaft was lit in a soft blue light that came from nowhere and everywhere at once. "How does it work?" wondered Midori. "Even I don't know that," said Raine. There was a gasp from the back. Everyone turned to see Zelos, eyes wide, mouth open, put his hands on his cheeks. "No WAY!" he said in mock surprise. "You're not Raine! Raine is omnipotent! She knows all and sees all! You must be a fake." Zelos got a good whollop that time, but it came from Megumi. "Ah-ow!" said Zelos, rubbing his head. "That really hurt! Why did YOU hit me?! I haven't done anything to you yet!" She shrugged and grinned. "I knew it was coming anyways," she said. "And I was closest." Zelos put on his hurt face. "What's omnipotent?" asked Lloyd. "Actually, Zelos got it right," said Presea. "It is an adjective used to refer to one who knows everything and sees or has the power to see anything. Sort of like Raine..."

"Come on guys!" said Sheena, tapping her foot and pointing down the tunnel. "Mousse's group is leaving us behind!" The otherworlders and the Shinsengumi discovered she was indeed correct, and they hurried to catch up. They slowed to walk as they fell in line behind the others. "So Sheena," said Ukyo over her shoulder, "tell me, how do you fight? When we were in battle, I was too busy and it was too dark for me to see what you were actually doing. And I've never seen you carry a weapon, only some strange cards. Are you a martial artist?'

"A martial artist of sorts," said Sheena. "Actually, those cards are how I fight." "What, something like Yu-Gi-Oh, where you summon monsters by throwing out cards?" asked Kuno. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said, "but no. I actually fight _with_ the cards." "How?" asked Aoi, puzzled. "In the same way a Key Crest is useless without the runes carved on its surface, as they should have told you," said Sheena, and all their heads nodded, "my cards are useless without the specifc runes written on them with special ink and engravers. With these charms on them, they make them powerful fighting tools, and I can also cast spells with them. They're called seals, and they hurt the enemy while affecting their abilities to fight, or else they and the power of an element, such as fire, wind, or water, to one of my allies weapons, so that they are more effective against certain enemies."

"And about those Summon Spirits you talked about," said Ryoko. "What gave you the idea to summon the spirits of light, uh, Laska and Una, did you call them?" Sheena nodded. "Aska and Luna," she said. "I got the idea when I started having a hard time seeing because of the darkness. Then I got angry, because the monsters obviously had the advantage. Since they were born in the darkness, they were raised in the darkness, and had to be adapted to the darkness, so they must see very well in the darkness. That's when I got the idea. If the monsters were adapted to darkness, then they probably have never seen true light, right? So I figured if I could make it really light by summoning Aska and Luna, maybe I could blind them and we'd have the advantage. However, I never thought it would be that harmful to them! I thought it would just hurt their eyes. I had no idea it would vaporize them!"

"A very good idea, nonetheless!" said Raine approvingly. "Just how I would have done it, using the scientific method! And your results were astounding! Sheena, I think you'd make a fine scientist!" Sheena rolled her eyes. "Don't get your hopes up, Professor," said Sheena. "So what was the deal with the Mana Cannon and the Great Seed?" asked Ranma. "Sounds pretty cool!" "Yes, well to get to that," said Raine, "you have to go all the way back to the beginning, when the one called Mithos the hero ended a war in the holy ground of Kharlan, that had raged on for...." Raine proceeded to give them a lecture on ancient to modern Sylvarant history, and when she finished, Regal filled in what she had left out or didn't know about Tethe'alla. Here and there some of the others would insert some facts or accounts they happened to know about their regional history ."Wow," said Ranma, shaking his head. "I didn't know someone could remember all that stuff! I don't know anything past the basics and my time period!" "Yes, well, our worlds were each quite smaller than yours is, and has less recorded history," said Regal. "In fact, very little is actually known about the time before Mithos and the Kharlan War. And our world has only been the size of your planet for about a year now." "I see," said Ranma, clearly not seeing. "If you don't mind, could you give us some information about your history?" asked Raine. "It seems this tunnel isn't going to end for a while." "Well," said Mousse, "that's really asking a lot. We could spend days talking about one century of history. Well, depending on which century." "How about this," suggested Raine. "you tell me the history of your world one country at a time, from ancient to modern. Then move on to another one. How's that sound?"

Mousse looked around the group. There was a general nod of approval. "We'd be glad to," he said. Raine squealed with excitement. "Excellent!!" she exclaimed. "Let me get my notebook!" "Why can't you get excited like that when I ask you to study me?" asked Zelos. "Shut it, Zelos!" hissed Sheena with a smack to his head. "I wanna hear this too!" "Me too," said all the others. Zelos mumbled sadly to himself and then listened quietly as the people from Earth gave them the complete history of Japan.

"Fascinating!" said Raine as she jotted notes down in her precise shorthand. Together, the people from Earth had managed to give the history of Japan and China to the off-worlders, and were about to begin on the United States when Mousse called them to a halt. "Did anyone notice that?" he asked. They shook their heads no. "Notice what?" asked Asuka. "The ground," said Mousse, "is beginning to slope upwards, meaning we're nearing the end of the tunnel. We should be cautious, and it would probably be best to not speak."

Ranma thought a moment. "How about we send out a scout?" he said. "Someone fast, who could go check the distance to the end, and could see what the outside is like?" Mousse considered this. "It sounds good, Ranma," he said. "Would anyone care to volunteer?" Ryoga raised his hand. "I am uninterested in this history lesson," he said. "I will go." Ukyo stood up. "Then I'll go too," she said. "It could be dangerous," said Ranma, doubtfully. "Exactly," she said, raising a finger. "It is because it could be dangerous that I should go with him, to cover him. It would be unwise for him to go alone." Mousse nodded. "Then go," he said. Ryoga stood and adjusted his rod on his back. "Come on," he said to Ukyo. To the rest of the group, he said, "We'll be back soon. Keep up the lesson." Then, together, he and Ukyo ran down the tunnel and were soon gone from their sight. Akane unfurled a map. "So where were we?" she asked herself. "Ah, yes, America. According to the holy book in our world, the Bible, and to scientific knowledge, human life originated in Asia, in a place called the Fertile Crescent, or Mesopotamia. It is the vegetated land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, and it lies as a large oasis in the middle of a vast, desert climate area. Now, during a period of time, roughly ten thousand years ago, during a period of time called the Ice Ages, called that because of the massive sheets of ice that covered much of the continents, there was a bridge, made of land and ice, that connected the Asian and North American continents, across a small body of water called the Bering Strait." She pointed to the gap of water between Alaska and Russia. "Popular belief is that during the Ice Ages, man crossed over this bridge and settled the land. Now, then, skipping ahead, we'll go to the sixteen hundreds A.D., which as we explained, stands for Anno Domini, meaning "in the year of our lord." And, to review, B.C. stands for....."

Akane's voice faded from Ryoga's perception. The tunnel carried her voice quite far. He now understood why Mousse was worried. Ryoga glanced around as dark ovals rushed past him as he ran. All along the tunnel, they had seen passages leading off into caves and what appeared to be mines. They had ignored them because they were obviously all smaller than the tunnel they were in. They remained convinced that this tunnel would lead them all the way out. Most likely it was the main backbone of the tunnel system, and all branches of it first started from here. Ryoga could now smell air from the outside, refreshingly cleaner and crisper than the musty, stale air of the tunnels. They came to the exit, and Ryoga carefully peered outside, and then motioned Ukyo to join him as he stepped outside.

A stiff wind blew, cold, from the north.Ukyo tugged at her coat, drawing it closer to herself. "I'm guessing that's where we're headed," whispered Ryoga. He pointed to a thick black towered that stood at least twenty stories tall, and was pointed like a wide dagger. There was no attempt to disguise this like the outer wall; it was simply fortified. Even from a distance they could tell it was heavily walled and guarded. It just gave off a feeling of being impassive, and it made Ukyo freeze solid. She did not even shiver at the wind. Ryoga broke himself from looking at the giant, pitch black fang against the ashen sky, which was beginning to lighten. Dawn must be arriving. "Let's go tell Mousse," said Ryoga. He grabbed Ukyo's arm, and her gaze was torn from the tower. "Y-yeah," she said.

Ryoga gave one last glance around and ran down the tunnel after Ukyo. He could soon hear Mousse's voice echo down the tunnel. "Americans were incensed, naturally," hesaid. "As a result of the many injustices Great Britain was imposing on its colonies, several resistance groups were formed, the most famous of which was called the Sons of Liberty. They were responsible for many of the retaliations against the British, such as the Boston Tea Party, where the Sons of Liberty dressed as Native Americans and dumped huge amounts of tea into Boston Harbor after the British created the Tea Act, which would raise taxes on imported tea, costing the Americans outrageous amounts to pay for tea, from Britain!" Ryoga skidded to a halt right behind Ukyo who stood before their seated companions.

Mousse stood. "Well, what did you find out?" he asked them. Ryoga stepped forward. "By all appearances," he said, "our main target is directly north of the exit to the tunnel, which faces west. The exit is only about five hundred feet from here." Mousse stroked his chin. "What does our target look like?" he asked. "Creepy!" said Ukyo. "It's a giant walled in tower. We're guessing it's heavily guarded. However, there did not seem to be any enemies near the tunnel exit. They're probably all inside the complex." Mousse turned to Ranma. "What would you suggest?" he asked Ranma. Ranma thought a moment. "How about we exit the tunnel, rest for the day, then try to figure out a way to enter the tower at night?" he suggested. Mousse nodded his head in agreement. "Does that sound good to everyone else?" he asked the group. They all nodded. "Then let's go."

It was not difficult to find a safe cave to rest in, and so the weary travelers set up camp in there. Ranma and Lloyd volunteered to be the lookouts. It was decided there would have to be two watchmen so that they could keep each other awake. Ranma and Lloyd sat on a log, staring into the grim outside. There were many hills in this region, and few trees. The cave faced south, so that the tower would be less likely to learn of their presence. Although the group was tired, it seemed no one could really sleep, so they built a fire and cooked over it. Genis brought out some meat and vegetables and went to making a stew.

After a moment, Ranma sighed, shifted positions, and rested his head on his hand. He changed postions again. Finally he took out his wallet and begin to through it. Lloyd looked over his shoulder. "Got any pictures in there?" he asked Ranma. "Yeah," he replied, and flipped his wallet to the center, where he kept his photos. "Here's me and Akane on our wedding day," he said, pointing to the first picture. "Me and Ryoga, Mousse and Shampoo, uh, here's a guy you don't know." "Who is he?" asked Lloyd. "His name's Ryu," said Ranma. "Ryu Kumon. Very powerful fighter, and a good friend." Ranma seemed sad. "Why didn't Ryu come with us?" asked Ryoga. "He could have helped out a lot." Ranma laughed softly, without humor. "Mortimer would have asked him, if not for one reason," said Ranma. He looked up at the group, who was watching him. "He's dead." There was a murmur of surprise. "How you know this?" asked Shampoo.

Ranma did not answer. "Because I killed him," said Kuno softly. "What?" said Akane in shock. "Why? How?" Kuno waited a moment, then began the story. "Shortly before Ranma came down with the sickness, I was in a street gang, of sorts. It was held that our leader knew the cure for the disease. One day, we ran into two strangers. Everyone wore face coverings, because of the fear of getting the sickness. So, unbeknownst to each other, Ranma and Ryu challenged our gang of five to a fight. It was my sword that gave the fatal wound to Ryu. Ranma revealed their identities to me, and was horrified by my actions, not that I had killed Ryu in particular, but that I had killed anyone. It was because it was Ryu that I saw the error of my ways. I fled, with only one last glance back to see Ranma beat the last one of them to a bloody mess. I suspect Ryu was looking to defeat my leader to obtain the cure for himself, for I later learned from Ranma he was sick. In no condition to fight, he overestimated his abilities and was struck down. It was essentially his fault, but it makes it no easier to deal with the fact I was the one to show him his error." The group was in shock. Ranma said nothing.

After a long while, the group made their individual apologies to Ranma and Kuno for teir own ignorance. Lloyd came back up to Ranma. "Um, excuse me," he said, "but I heard you mention a Mortimer. Who is that?" Ranma picked up his wallet and flipped through it. "He's a middle-aged friend of mine," Ranma said. "Don't know much about him. Here's a picture of us." Ranma gave his wallet to Lloyd. Lloyd looked at the picture. "Looks kind of like that guy," muttered Lloyd. Suddenly his eyes went wide. "Wait a minute," he said. Lloyd stared close at the picture, turning it a little left, then right. "No way," he whispered to himself. "What's up?" asked Ranma. Lloyd didn't answer, but instead went half ran, half stumbled over to his companions.

"Guys!" he exclaimed. "You've got to see this!" He showed them the picture. They gasped. Sheena held a hand to her mouth. "But, but," stammered Genis. "How is this possible?" asked Presea. "It isn't," said Regal. "I would agree with that," said Raine, "but more and more it's becoming obvious things that can't happen have happened already, so we shouldn't be so quick to dismiss this." "What's going on?" asked Ranma, confused. "This man," said Sheena, pointing to the picture, "the one you call Mortimer, is from our world." "You know him?" said Ranma, sounding more surprised that they knew him than that he was from another world. "Yeah," said Colette. "But the thing is, we also know he's dead. He died trying to save us." Ranma stared in wonder at the man he had known for so long. What was going on? What was his reason for being here? How did he get here? "His name was," said Zelos, "or is, I guess, Botta. He was one of the leaders of the Renegades. And they're right; he drowned a long, long time ago, saving us from the flood waters he got trapped in. One can only wonder how and why he's here." "Indeed," said Raine.

"What's that sound?" said Colette. Mousse shook his head. "What sound?" he asked. "Listen!" said Colette. For a second they listened and heard nothing. Then they heard it, a soft, high-pitched whistling sound coming from outside. "Get down!" hissed Mousse, and everyone ducked. An arrow flew into the cave and stabbed itself into a dirt wall. No more flew into the cave. No more were even shot near it, for no one could hear any more flying, not even Colette with her acute hearing. Mousse got up cautiously and went over to the arrow. He pulled it out of the wall. There was a note tied around the shaft with a string. "What does it say?" asked Ryoko. Mousse put on his glasses and looked at it. Reading aloud, he said, " 'You have many questions, I can tell. I have the answers to those questions. If you want them, come to the core of the tower and through the machine in the middle. You were going to go there anyways, were you not? And don't try to fly over the wall. They have a forcefield protecting it. P.S., In case you weren't planning on it, destroy the circle when you go through it, so no one will follow you.' It's not signed."

Hinako shivered. "I wonder who it's from?" she said. "I think we should listen to it," said Ranma. "Why?" asked Herb. "Why not?" said Ranma. "It's true, we were going there anyways. And besides, we haven't had a clue as to what we're really doing. This could be an important lead. We should follow it." "It does not appear we have many options," said Presea. "I agree with Ranma." "As do I," said Mousse. "Does anyone object?" No one raised their hands. Raine sighed. "I swear, you people are way too trusting," she said. "But your arguments are sound. I will follow you." "Then it's settled," said Mousse. "Come nightfall, we enter the tower."

The rock sailed through the air. It was about to clear the wall when it burst apart in a shower of sparks. Another clanked off the wall. A third scratched the gate. "I guess they weren't lying," said Ranma, stepping back into the trees. "No way we can get over the wall. We'll have to go through it." Mousse nodded. "Yes, but the walls are far too thick," he said. "We need to find a weak point. From what we've seen, it would appear we'll have to go in the front. Ther's only one gate in and out. It won't be easy, and once we get going we'll have to keep our momentum. They'll know we're there, so we won't be able to hide for long. We've just gotta take an assault method. Is everyone ready to do this?"

One by one, all the heads nodded. "All right then," Mousse said. He turned and peered out of the trees directly at the gate. "Taro, would you do the honors of getting this going?" Taro brought up a pail of water. "Huh, huh," he said. "It'd be my pleasure." He dumped the water over himself. Although the offworlders and the Shinsengumi had been told about Taro's Jusenkyo form, it was still quite a surprise to see him actually change into a fifteen foot tall minotaur with wings, tentacles, and an eel tail. Taro looked over at Mousse, who nodded. Taro dashed forward, his right arm held high. Mousse followed, holding Han Guang in two hands, ready to slash. Them the rest of he group followed. Taro leaned back and put all his power behind his fist. The thick metal door was torn off its hinges. It flew back and tore down the second gate, which fell and crushed several beings beneath it.

Akane checked the perimeter. Besides the crushed guards, there appeared to be only one other being who saw them, at least from the courtyard. It gaped in shock, and too slowly went to sound he alarm. A shuriken flew through the air and sliced into the creature's neck. It fell, dead.

The group crossed the courtyard surrounding the black tower and came to the entrance. Another pile-driver blow opened their way in, and Taro bellowed as he crushed five surprised guards. Mousse was more than a little surprised by what they saw. The entire tower was hollow, save for narrow spire in the center that reached to the top of the tower. But although it was hollow, it was by no means empty. Across the floor and on the wall was every sort of creature imaginable. But the thing was, they were all sleeping.

Evidently, they had barged in on them during sleeping hours. Apparently, the sound of rending metal and bellowing beasts were natural around here. Mousse put a finger to his lips. He began to tiptoe past the creatures. He indicated that they needed to get to the building in the center. They nodded, and slowly began to make their way past thousands of sleeping beasts. They crossed without incident, until they got to the building. Mousse and Ranma tried to pry the door open while the others watched. A screeching alarm went off and the group readied their weapons. Taro pushed Mousse and Ranma aside and began to pull open the door.

The enemies had all woken up by now, and had their weapons drawn. For a long time, they stared each other down. Then, breaking he silence, there was the sound of clapping. Slow, deliberate. Metal capped heels clicked on the balck floor as someone walked towards them. The crowd of beasts parted and a man in a black cloak stopped in front of the intruders. His face could not be seen. "I'm impressed you made it this far," he said with a German accent. "Of course, you had help. Heh, but not from those humans and half-elves."

The group stared at him, unmoving. He stepped forward in front of Ranma. "Who do you think it was that let you in?" he said. "Surely you suspected something. How else to explain the ease of your entrance? You walked willingly into our trap. Such good little boys and girls. And you know when you are beaten, too, no? Of course. I bet you'd be dead by now if you did not, huh? So, are you going give up willingly, or do we have to do this the hard way?" No one moved. The eager beasts moved in, preventing all movement by the threat of a sword in the side. "Well?" the man asked. Ranma stepped forward. Ranma stood there for a few long moments, then made a disgusting sound with his throat. He hacked a glob of phleghm into the man's face. The man smiled. "Fine," he said, wiping his face off and gesturing to one of the beasts. It grabbed Akane and brutally shoved her to the man, who roughly took her in an armlock. With another gesture, all the creatures tensed. "Go, you damn animals!" yelled the man in the cloak. Reluctantly, the things all filed out the door. When they were gone, the man smiled and drew his sword. He pressed the tip against Akane's side. She said nothing. "Here's a fair trade," he said. "You all stay here with me, and this one doesn't have to die." He looked at her, and smiled. In horror, Ranma watched as he leaned over and licked her face. "Such a pretty one," he said softly. "Perhaps she could be my sex slave instead. Huh, huh." He smiled.

There was a ripping sound as Taro tore the door off the central pylon. The others rushed in and began to study the inside. "Just like we thought, a transporter!" said Raine. They began to leave through it. Ranma stood there, unmoving, staring at the man, who stared back, grinning. "Come on!" said Mousse. "There's nothing we can do!" Ranma did not move. "I'm. Not. Leaving. Yet," he said. "Go. We'll meet you there." Mousse hesitated, then took the transporter with Lloyd. "Well, it's just us, now, huh?" said the man. "That's fine. All I need is you, Ranma. The others don't matter. They'll fail without you, anyhow." He turned back to Akane. "And do you know what? I think I will make you my slave. And you know what the first the thing I'm gonna have you do is?" He leaned over and, still smiling, whispered something in her ear. Though she tried hard, Akane could not help the fear and digust from showing in every feature of her face. Ranma's eyes widened. Without a word, without changing his blank expression, Ranma drew Xiao Lian. The man faced him. "Have you no respect for her life?" he said. "How sad. I'll just have to kill her then, and it's all because of you. What a shame. I was looking forward to her seeing what her body could do."

Although Ranma still did not change his expresson, Xiao Lian suddenly burst into a hot white flame that lit the whole tower in a blazing light. The man pulled back his sword to plunge it into Akane's side. Ranma suddenly switched his grip from a slashing postion to a stabbing. He put the sword by his ear, said a few fervent words, and threw the sword. Before it left his shoulder, the sword melted and changed form, lengthening and tapering until it turned into a long spear. As the man's sword began to tear through her clothing, the spear pierced his hand and stabbed it into his thigh. He howled and the anonymous man's sword clattered to the ground. He moaned as the white-hot spear burned his flesh. Akane threw herself to the ground as Ranam drew Cheng Ying and hurled it. In that moment of panic, instead of ducking aside like he should have, the man acted on blind instinct and raised his hand in a futile attempt to stop the blade. The saw edge sliced off three fingers and the sword plunged into his chest. He fell to the ground, a look of amazement and dreadful realization on his face.

Akane got up and ran over to Ranma. His face fell, and tears flowed from both their eyes. "Thank you, Ranma!" she sobbed. "I won't let anything happen to you," he whispered reassuringly. "I promise." Letting her go, he walked over to the man. He did not move. Ranma grimaced and pulled Cheng Ying out of the man's chest. He noted with mild curiosity that the drops of blood not only ran down the invisible blade, but sometimes went through it. He sheathed it and gripped Xiao Lian. The white spear suddenly faded to blue as it returned to its regular scimitar shape. Ranma sighed and took a deep breath, his eyes closed. "Ahhh," he said. "I think I must have channeled all my power into that sword, because I just got it back!" He put Xiao Lian back in its scabbard. "Let's go," Akane said. "The others are probably worried." Ranma nodded. They ran over to the transporter pad, and stepped on it. Arriving on the other side, they saw Taro raise a fist at them, then stop. "You guys!" said Colette, running over and giving them a big hug. "We were so worried! We were gonna smash the pad, but I told them to wait just a little bit, and I'm so glad they listened!" Ranma smiled. "You alright?" asked Ryoko. "Yeah, we're okay," said Ranma. "Go ahead now, Taro." The big monster nodded, and brought his fist down on the pad, smashing it beyond repair. "Now they have a transporter, but they can't come here without a receiver pad," said Raine.

"Well, glad that's over!" said Xiaoxing in relief. They all agreed and nodded thankfully. "The journey, however, is far from over," came a voice from behind them. They turned around in surprise. Sheena gasped. "You-you're!" she stammered. "But, but," stumbled Lloyd, searching for words. "But, uh, _how?_"

Metal capped heels clicked on the dirty black floor. "You failed me again, Lieutenant," said the commander to the charred body. "At least you'll never get in my way again." He sighed. "I suppose what they say is true. I'll just have to do it myself." With that, he turned, and left the corpse for all to see, as a warning to the rest of his subordinates:

Don't fail me.


	5. Many Meetings

Many Meetings

"Ugh, nothing makes sense anymore," complained Lloyd. "No, it certainly does not," replied Kratos. "But just because it doesn't make sense does not mean its unimportant." Kratos had shown up almost immediately after the twenty-seven people had appeared on the other side of the transporter. Seeing as how Kratos was seemingly gone forever, destined to be the only one to stay with Derris-Kharlan as it floated through the lonely expanse of space as a comet, it was a bit of a shock to the offworlders to see him standing right in front of them on a world none of them belonged on.

"You know this man?" asked Asuka, warily eyeing the newcomer. Lloyd nodded. "Remember how I told you how my father left with Derris-Kharlan?" he said. The people from Earth looked at him in a dumbfounded way, as if he had stepped out of a legend. "Then," said Akane, "he's your father?" Lloyd nodded. "Biologically, anyhow," said Kratos. "I regret to say I was not there for the most important years of his life, but I am happy to say his foster father raised him well. Probably better than I could." Kratos seemed sad. "It doesn't matter that you weren't there," said Lloyd, putting his hand on Kratos' shoulder. "I know there were things you had to do that you didn't want to. It's okay. I think you're a great man, and a great father. You helped me when you could, and when I needed it. That's all that matters." Kratos smiled, a fond look in his eye. "Thank you, Lloyd," he said simply.

"Oh, yeah," said Lloyd, digging in his pocket. He took out a piece of paper and unfolded it. "Were you the one who sent this?" Kratos glanced at it. "Yes, that was me," he said. "So, then," said Kodachi, "it would appear you have some answers for us, yes?" "We'd like to know what's going on," said Midori. "I think I speak for all of us when I say we're quite confused." Kratos nodded. "I can and will tell you all I know," he said. "But we need to find shelter first. However, before that, I encourage you to look up." There was a mumble of confusion and then they looked up at the sky.

"Oh, wow," said Sheena, awestruck. "It's pretty," said Colette. "That's quite an understatement, from my perspective," said Regal. "I can't believe it," said Herb. "Neither can I," said Hinako. "I know it doesn't mean much coming from me," said Shinnosuke, "but I can't remember the last time I saw the stars." Indeed, that's all it was; stars. But the sky had been blocked out by the Great Darkness for so long many had forgotten what a clear night sky in the country looked like. "Where are we that we can see the stars?" asked Ryoko. "I thought the whole world was covered by clouds." "West Texas," said Kratos. "If you'll follow me, I'll answer your questions. At least, the ones I know the answer to." Kratos led them along the banks of a shallow, muddy river. Once Sheena slipped and her legs plunged into the water. "Augh!" she exclaimed. "It's freezing!" The water was up to her stomach and was still cold from winter. She tried to pull her legs out of the water but, to her surprise, she found they wouldn't budge. "Gah!" she said. "My feet are stuck!"

Lloyd went over to her. "I'll help," he said. "Ah, okay," said Sheena, trying not to blush as Lloyd put his arms around her waist and she crouched. "On three," said Lloyd. "One, two, three!" With a heave, they pulled her out of the water and sent her sprawling on the sand. Sheena stood up and brushed the sand off of herself, only to find her boots were missing. "Dammit!" she muttered. Lloyd handed her two wet, but fortunately not muddy, boots. "This sucks," she said, wrinkling her nose at the boots. "Well, let's get somewhere where we can rest and I can dry myself off." Kratos pointed down the river. At a bend in the river there was a slope of sand with a cave at the top. "We'll rest in there," he said. In a couple of minutes, they had ascended the sand slope and were in the cave.

"I'll get started on a fire and start cooking," said Genis. "Hey Genis," called Sheena. "Yeah?" he said turning around as a pair of pants, a shirt, and two boots smacked into him. "Dry those out over the fire for me, will you?" she asked. "Thanks!" Sheena said, ignoring Genis' grumbles of protest. Mousse allowed Sheena to wear his large coat while her clothes dried out, although Sheena quickly took it off, sacrificing modesty to be cool. The others soon noticed it was unusually hot in this cave, and it wasn't just because of the fire in the back where Genis was cooking. A number of the others stripped down as well, or at least removed outer coats or cloaks. Even Kratos began to sweat, something Lloyd had never seen Kratos do. Kratos removed his shirt with its shoulder pads and tails, but he retained an undershirt. It was everything the group could do to stop Zelos from getting naked and showing off himself. "But I wanna," said Zelos. "Say another word and I rip your vocal cords out!" interrupted Sheena. Perspiration now drenched her body and she slumped against the wall, her strength sapped.

"Why is it so hot in here?" she moaned. "I was about to tell you, but I was cut off," said Kratos. "We apologize," said Mousse, wiping his brow. "Would you please tell us?" "This cave is the ending of a heat exhaust line," said Kratos. "The actual structure which produces the heat is approximately three hundred and fifty miles away." "This structure must produce tremendous amounts of heat for it to be this hot, this far away," said Raine. "What sort of stucture is it?" Kratos was quiet for a while. "A tower," he said finally. "In fact, the temperatures get so high, the tower requires five exhaust lines just like the one we are in to safely vent the excess heat." "What do they do in this tower?" asked Raine, who finally had to remove the rest of her outer garments.

Kratos sighed. "Perhaps I should just tell the whole story, from the beginning," he said. "I think that would be best," said Kuno. As Kratos sat there, with all these people around him in a circle in their underwear, he had a sudden, inexplicible feeling he was at a sleepover, he believed they were called, and that he was supposed to tell the next story. And the absurdity of it all, the implausibility that this situation he was in would happen, just made him want to laugh out loud and roll on the floor. Instead, all that came out was a grin that wrested control of his mouth for a long moment before he looked at the ground and regained control. The others wondered what was going on in his head, but only Lloyd had any idea of what Kratos was thinking. Lloyd knew what Kratos felt: he was feeling it too.

Kratos looked back up, and began to tell the tale.

"A long time ago, the people of Sylvarant and Tethe'alla never knew about each other's existence, aside from the old legends of ancient times. They existed side by side, but never saw each other. Then, through the actions of a small band of rebels, Mithos, who had created the situation and was at the heart of Cruxis, was defeated. They then restore the two worlds back into one, as they were before Mithos used the Eternal Sword to divide them. Symphonia, as it was then called, became a place of peace and prosperity. Unfortunately, and unbeknownst to the rest of the world, Cruxis was only defeated, and was not dead. The scattered remnants of Cruxis and the Desians united their forces, and fled. They soon found that there was no place in Symphonia for them. So, they left.

"Their leader proposed the idea that perhaps there was another world parallel to Symphonia, as Sylvarant was to Tethe'alla. They found it, and it was called Earth. Upon arriving on Earth, they were amazed by the technology and appalled at the destruction. They saw this world as unfit to rule, only to harvest. So they built themselves a tower. This tower is identical to the Tower of Salvation, except for a few retrofittings. When it reached completion, the leader of Cruxis turned it on, and ripped a gash in time. Think of it this way: time is like a sea, and everything that is possible to occur is on the surface of the water. Now, our worlds are like boats, sailing along a course in time. Based on the causes and effects of the present circumstances, the future will follow a certain path on the sea, in an area of likely occurances, like a current in the ocean. This current is normally hemmed in by 'banks', or limits on reality. What Cruxis did was rip a hole across our river, causing our boat to fall into the hole. Our worlds are on a course they're not supposed to be. What must be accomplished is, effectively, the plugging up of the hole from underneath, to push the water and the boat back into the river. The longer we continue on the course we are taking now, the less our chances of getting it back to normal. This course is dangerous, as it occasionally experiences, shall we say, jogs, or snags, due to the turbulence of the 'waterfall'. Snags like these come from turbulent systems, and they are responsible for the sicknesses in this world, and for Lloyd's and his companions' arrival. The darkness, however, is intentional.

What Cruxis is trying to do is to take over Symphonia. They consider it a better world, more peaceful, therefore easier to take and worth taking. In order to take over Symphonia, they have secretly begun massing here. By setting up the cloud cover, they can develop their night monsters. The clouds are also specially engineered to absorb sunlight. When they get saturated, they channel the energy to the tower, which recieves it and stores it for whatever they need. They will continue doing this until they have enough of what they need: enough soldiers, and enough raw power. When they are done, they will destroy this world like a piece of garbage. And so it is our duty to stop them. I will now take your questions."

Ranma raised his hand and spoke. "So, when we plug up the hole," he said, "what will happen to time? Will we go back in time or go forward?" Kratos sighed. "I feared you would ask this," he said. "Botta, or Mortimer, as you know him, told you that you'd go back in time, correct?" Ranma's group nodded. "The truth is," said Kratos, "is that we're not entirely sure. We, and by we I mean Yuan, Botta, and myself, we have found that outcome is the most likely, and would be best. However, there is a very good chance it will not. If you take my illustration about the river, then think of it like this. When we fix time, or "plug up the hole", our world will resurface in a sort of eddy. Due to this, there is no sure way to predict what will happen. However, simulations would suggest that the swirl would send us briefly back in time, then around the "scar", as Botta referred to it, I believe, and then continuing on. But there is also the possibility that will not happen, and we will simply continue forward from here." At the mention of this, many in Ranma's group visibly paled, although the others from Symphonia and the Shinsengumi weren't sure why. Kratos had a pretty good guess though. Botta had told them what he had said the night before they departed. Kratos hid a smile, then looked back up. "Anyone else?" he asked.

"Yeah," said Lloyd. "How come you're back? How'd you get back? And why?" "You saw the meteorite, yes?" said Kratos. Lloyd nodded. "I rode down on that. As for why, it was Cruxis' doing." "What do you mean?" asked Raine, intrigued. "Cruxis requires more than electricity," said Kratos. "They need mana. To obtain enough mana to challenge the world which contains the source of infinite mana, they realized they would have to reacquire Derris-Kharlan. Their leader devised a tractor beam to fire into space to catch Derris-Kharlan. What is truly amazing, however, is that they not only pulled it across a vast length of space, they made it cross the barrier between our two dimensions. That was an interesting experience, I have to tell you. To make such an immense piece of matter to cross over would take such energy..." He shook his head. "Well, that was the original purpose of gathering the solar energy. But, seeing the potential it had, they kept it going. A good thing for us, otherwise this world might have been discarded by now." Akane had been silent, staring down at the floor. "Why?" she asked quietly. "Why what?" asked Kratos. "Why didn't Mortimer, or Botta, or whoever, why didn't he tell us everything? Why did he hold back from telling us?"

Kratos looked at her kindly. "Would it have made a difference?" he asked. "Would you have made any other decision had you known that you might not go back in time once you completed your mission?" Akane was quiet. "I did not think so. Do not worry, and do not be mad at Botta. I instructed him not to tell you everything. I didn't think you needed anything else on your mind right then."

"What about me?" asked Ranma. "Was he telling the truth about me? Am I really the only one who can save the world?" Kratos grunted. "Yes," he said. "Why?" asked Hinako. "Why is he so special?" Kratos regarded her curiously. "It's interesting, really," said Kratos. "The only way to gain access to the core of the tower, where all the significant equipment is, is by undergoing a DNA scan. And not just any member of Cruxis will do. They figured that would be too easy. Anyone with sufficient forces could storm the tower, capture a member, and force their flesh onto the scanner. Instead, they randomly chose a human from Earth to be the key. And it wound up being you. So that way, even if someone got into the tower, they could not open the way into the core, which is practically indestructible from the outside. And only one person knows who it is, and he has undergone considerable torture-resistance training. He will not tell, and there is no other way to tell who it is. And the only way to reset the system requires the knowledge and the retinas contained in the head of their leader. I have heard of the technology they possess. There is no way to fool it, and no way to destroy it. Terrible, it truly is."

Zelos cocked his head. "Wait a minute," he said, "if only one person knew who it was, and he wouldn't tell, how did you find out?" Kratos smiled. "I thought you'd have figured it out by now, or at least our distinguished Professor would have," he said. "Botta was that one. Why do you think he made friends with Ranma? When Ranma got ill, he learned of it and went to go check on him. I ran into him on his journey. He was overjoyed to see me, and we hastily worked out our plan. He was in an important postion, and he was dying to use his information to bring down Cruxis. He had been with them since he faked his death, hoping to destroy them from the inside. Despite the dangers of betraying Cruxis, he followed through on the plan and was just picked up by Yuan a while ago. They will be joining us shortly."

Having said this, there were no more questions, and everyone either went to sleep or did something quietly. Ryoko was sitting in a corner, thinking, when the violet-haired girl, Sheena, Ryoko believed she was called, came sidling up next to her. Ryoko turned her head slowly to look at this girl. She, as well as most everyone else, was in her underwear. Sheena was just staring at her, her cheeks rosy, sweat dripping from her body. Suddenly she cracked an unsteady grin. Then she stuck her hands between Ryoko's arms and her body. Ryoko looked down in surprise as Sheena felt the curves of her body with her hands. "Ummmm," said Ryoko. Sheena began to crawl towards her slowly, and Ryoko backed up into a wall. Her heart pounded as this strange woman approached her until she was practically sitting in her lap. Sheena leaned close to Ryoko's face. "Ya know," said Sheena, "you've gotta pretty sexy body there, girl." Sheena was almost touching noses with her now, and Ryoko was alarmed to smell the musky odor of alcohol on her hot breath. Sheena's hand trailed on Ryoko's breast, and then suddenly began to squeeze and fondle it before letting it go a few seconds later. "Uh, thanks," said Ryoko, wondering what in the hell was going on.

Sheena's eyes narrowed. "You think you're the only one with a great body around here?!" she asked. "Just look at me!" Ryoko had to admit, the nineteen year old had quite an impressive figure. Sheena leaned towards Ryoko again. "You think you can take him from me?" she said. "Well you're wrong. With this body I'm gonna keep Lloyd around for a long time! And another thing, I, uh, urrgh...." Sheena trailed off and fell against Ryoko. She began to snore loudly against Ryoko's chest. Ryoko groaned. Why me? she thought. Lloyd came up, looking embarassed. "Sorry about that," he said as he picked Sheena up and slung her over his shoulder. "She's really a nice person. I guess we just can't give her too much whiskey. Can we, Ranma?" Ranma looked over Lloyd sheepishly. Lloyd glared at him, then walked away and set Sheena down somewhere to sleep. _That's a relief!_ thought Ryoko. _For a while there I thought she was coming on to me..._

Sheena woke up a while later, still hotter than hell. Everyone else seemed to be able to sleep, but Sheena could not. Between the scorching temperatures, the alcohol, and her hot flashes, she felt like she was going to explode at any moment. She got up quietly, removed her underwear, and grabbed a towel, wrapping herself in it._ I'll just go for a little soak_, she thought. _That'll cool me down_. As she came to the exit, she was stopped by a hand. She looked down to see Kratos looking up at her. "Where are you going?" he said softly. "To the river?" she said. Kratos seemed indecisive. "Fine, but take someone with you," he said at last. "I'll go," said Lloyd, walking up in a towel. "I can't sleep anyways." Kratos nodded, then lay back down.

Lloyd and Sheena walked down to the river and took off their towels. Sheena eased herself into the water, which was refreshingly cold. She sighed, and ducked her head under, soothing her burning face. She came back up and shook her head. She didn't care the water was dirty. It felt great. Lloyd sat next to her, looking up at the stars. "I wonder," said Lloyd. "Wonder what?" asked Sheena when he didn't finish his sentence.

Lloyd looked at her. "I wonder what it must have been like for Dad, for Kratos," he said. "Having to be stranded on a comet, alone, nothing to really do, no one to be with, just watching the stars and stuff go by." Lloyd looked back up at the stars. "That must be tough." Sheena looked down at the water. "Well, there are the angels," she said. "They're lifeless, Sheena," said Lloyd. "They don't care about anything. They don't feel. They don't think. They wouldn't understand or care about Dad. He really was alone."

Lloyd closed his eyes. "I hope I never have to be alone," he said. When he opened his eyes, he found Sheena in front of him. She looked compassionately at him. "I'll never let you be alone," she said, and kissed him. Lloyd put his arms around her and kissed her back. "Thanks, Sheena," he said. He held her in silence. Lloyd continued to stare at the stars, and wonder.

Sheena realized she must have dozed off, because the next thing she knew she opened her eyes to find sunlight striking her in the face. She groaned and rolled over. She was staring at a rock wall. Lloyd must have brought me in last night, she thought. Looking under her thin sheet, she saw that Lloyd had not bothered to try and dress her; she was still naked. She turned back over to see that everyone else ws already up. She looked around for her clothes and saw they were clean and neatly pressed, sitting next to her feet. She took her underwear and put it on underneath the sheet, then stood up and dressed fully. She was amazed by how good she smelled. She took her bow and tied her hair back with it. She noted that her hair felt smooth and silky. Lloyd hadn't dressed her, or woken her, but had somehow managed to_ wash _her. When she was finished, she went over to him and asked him if that was true.

"Yeah, it is, actually," he said with a laugh. "You were out last night. All that whiskey made you sleep like a rock, and I figured since you were all hot and sweaty, you might like it if you were cool and clean." Sheena smiled and hugged him. "Thanks, Lloyd!" she said. "That was really thoughtful." Lloyd blushed. "Nah, it was nothing," he said. Sheena sniffed his hair. "You smell good, too," she said suspiciously. "Did you use my soaps on you, too?" She drew back and looked at him, holding his shoulders. "Well, I figured you might like a clean boyfriend, too," he said with a shrug. Sheena burst out laughing. "That's fine, it's fine!" she said, wiping a tear from her eye. "And what about my clothes?" she said. "Genis washed them this morning while he and everyone else was bathing," he said, jerking a thumb in his friend's general direction. Sheena clapped her hands. "So everyone's clean?" she said. "Uh, yeah...." said Lloyd, wondering what was up. Sheena squealed with delight. "Cool!" she said, and skipped off to find breakfast. "What was _that_ about?" he asked in confusion as Zelos came up behind him, eating a bowl of miso stew Genis had made. Zelos put down his spoon and sighed. "Even I don't know everything about women," he said.

Kratos finished his stew and set down the bowl. He wiped his mouth and stood up to speak. "Now that Botta and Yuan have arrived," he announced, "we will execute our attack upon the tower. However, it will be a long journey, so after you have eaten, I suggest you prepare for a long, long walk. The tower is some three hundred and fifty miles from here, in the ruins of a city called Austin, the capital of this state." Megumi whistled. "Three hundred and fifty miles," she repeated. "I had forgotten about that. That's a long ways to go. It'll take a good month to get there, at least!" "If we walked all the way," said Yuan. "We have brought enough Rheiards to accomodate all of you comfortably, two to a craft. However, we can only take them so far. Once within a hundred mile radius of the tower, we come within range of their flying sentinels, and soon after that, at ninety miles, we come within range of their outermost anti-aircraft turrets. We thought they'd be cocky enough to forgo such defenses, but apparently they've spared no expense to keep their stronghold safe. So, we'll have to land about one hundred and ten miles from the tower. If everyone will follow me for a moment, we'll show you how to operate a Rheiard."

Yuan and Botta led them outside, where they had set up a Rheiard to provide a demonstration. The group stopped before a small, motorcycle sized vehicle. "This is a Rheiard," said Yuan. "Although only half of you will be flying them," said Botta, "and some of you already can pilot one, this will be of benefit to everyone if you pay attention." Yuan went over to the Rheiard's controls. "It's a lot like riding a bike," he said, "but with some differences. First of all, here's how you start it." He rubbed his thumb back and forth against a small black switch. "See this switch? Push down and hold it to start the engine." He demonstrated, and the Rheiard roared to life. It began to float and spew multicolored fire from its tailpipe. "Push up and hold the same switch to kill the engine." He did so, and the craft powered down, setting down on the sand. He swung his leg over the seat and sat down. "Sit like this with your feet on these pedals. Grip the handlebars here, where the rubber is. Push gently on the left handlebar to turn left, right to turn right. The force of your push and the shift of your weight as you lean on it will make it turn. When you're going fast, only nudge it about an inch. That's enough to make it turn, going so fast. You'll need more when going slower. The left pedal is your brake, the right is the accelerator. Press and hold down the right one all the way, because that's all the speed you'll get out of 'em, and we need to go as fast as we can. This red button is only for crossing the dimensional transfer system, which we won't be using, so don't mess with it. If there's a question about any of your display panels, ask me in flight." Genis raised his hand.

"What is it, Genis?" asked Botta. "How are we going to ask you if we're flying?" Genis inquired. "Good question," said Kratos. "And here's the answer." Kratos tossed him a helmet. Genis caught it and examined it. It was lightweight and black, shaped roughly like a kendo mask, although it only went down to the level of the chin, and had no shoulder attachments. There was no visor, only the black plastic of which the helmet was composed. "That's a one way visor helmet there," said Yuan. "You can see out, but no one can see in. It's padded and fits easily on the head, but not too tightly. Air vents keep it cool in there, and it comes with a built in all way radio that communicates with other helmets in the area. They were custom built by us, and we designed them to be resistant to jamming frequencies and powerful blows. No one knows the signal frequency but us, however, given enough time, one could patch in, so we must talk in short bursts, only a few words at a time, and only as much as is necessary. We would work out a code if we had time, but we need to leave too soon.

"The controls for the radio are simple," said Botta. "Press the green button to talk, and it transmits to all other helmets. In case of emergency, flip up the yellow cover and press the red or the blue button. If you press the red button, the helmet with detonate in five seconds with a force comparable to a stick of dynamite. Press the green and the radio will destroy itself quietly." Kratos gave everyone their own helmet. "These visors will also protect us from spies," said Kratos, "although I'm not entirely how much protection they provide. Perhaps if caught alone, it would be useful. Anyhow, go back to camp, finish packing, and return here. We will issue Rheiard assignments to everyone then." The group returned to the cave, slightly sickened. All of them hoped they would never have to use the buttons under the yellow cover.

Mint sighed and smacked his lips. Riding the Rheiards had been exciting the first hour or so, but now it was getting dull. They only traveled at about ninety miles an hour, so it would be another hour and a half before they reached their destination, at the least. Lime, who was flying the Rheiard Mint was on, was similarly bored. Had he not been occupied with flying the craft, he thought he might have fallen asleep by now.

There had been silence for a long while now, and Ranma could sense everyone's boredom. He wanted to remedy it somehow: the quiet was deafening. However, he had no idea how to do this. Ranma slumped back in his seat, thinking. He racked his mind for a question, any question, that could start a conversation that would alleviate the quiet. He shot up straight, an idea striking him. He pressed the green button on the side of his helmet and held it down. "Hey," he said. "Hold that thought," said Yuan, tense. "What is it?" asked Kratos. Mousse nervously fingered his bundle as he rode on the Rheiard Lloyd was piloting. He had a bad feeling he would need the bundle's contents very soon.

Yuan double checked his radar display, hoping it was wrong. He frowned. It was not. "I've got something on my sensors," he said. "Looks a single scout. Behind us. Damn, he's closing in fast! Hard right, everyone!" Everyone leaned to the right, causing the Rheiards to turn. Suddenly there was a piercing shriek as the scout caught up to them. "Evasive maneuvers!" cried Yuan. "Attack at will!"

It was too late. The enemy had found its target. Hefting a long spear, the fell beast and its rider cut off the Rheiard Genis was flying and Megumi was riding on. Genis tried to turn, but he was not fast enough. The rider hurled its spear. It sped through the air, and slammed into Genis' shoulder, missing its mark, but striking a serious blow. Mousse stood on the Rheiard. He watched as Presea's Rheiard swooped in to catch Genis as he fell, stunned, from his craft, and he watched as the rider pursued her. He had to. He had to. He had to. He did.

Mousse plunged his hand into his bundle. Out of it he produced a long-bore rifle with a scope. He took of his helmet, set it down, and shoved the scope into his eye. Taking half a second to aim, he fired the gun.

He hit it dead on. The rider fell from its steed, disintegrating as it fell. "Lloyd!" he yelled. "Take us to the beast!" Lloyd complied, and Mousse switched his rifle for a pump-action shotgun. He clicked off the safety and aimed as he approached the winged monster. Lloyd pulled the craft in close, and the creature reared up to attack them. Mousse saw the open chest area and fired. The animal staggered, hit by the blow. Lloyd came back for another pass, his ears ringing, his mind uncomprehending, but his fighting sense was still intact. Mousse cocked the gun, spewing out the empty shell and loading a fresh one into the barrel. The beast flew staggered now, and Mousse aimed for the wings. He fired two shots into one wing, causing it to turn into a spiral, heading for the ground some five hundred feet below. Mousse leapt onto the dragonlike monster and pressed the muzzle of his gun into the back of the creature's skull. "Burn in hell, bastard!" he said, and squeezed the trigger. The head burst apart, and Lloyd, who stuck near Mousse, came in to get him. Mousse jumped back onto the Rheiard. "Let's go find the others!" he yelled. Lloyd nodded, and took them up.

After a quick circle, they found the rest of the Rheiards set down in a clearing in the forest. They rushed over to the others, who stood back, watching in morbid awe, as Presea worked on Genis. AS they came up, they saw her remove Genis' helmet. Hers was already off, and lay nearby. Everyone else had abandoned their helmets, too. Mousse paled as he turned his attention to Genis.

The spear had impaled him, going straight through his upper left chest. It had missed his heart, but the wound was still grave. Blood trickled from the wound, still held back by the shaft piercing the vessels. He did not appear conscious at all. Presea removed her gloves with her teeth and took the dagger from her waist. She made a few, precise cuts in the fabric of his shirt and removed it from the area of the wound. "Ranma, hold him up," she said softly. Ranma walked over quickly and supported the boy. Using her ax, Presea lopped off the barbed tip of the spear. The other end also had a wicked looking attachment on it, so it didn't really matter which end sh took off. "Sheena, the water of life," she said. Sheena took out her pack and looked through it. She found a bottle containing a blue liquid, and she handed it to Presea. Walking back over to Genis, she firmly grasped the spear with one hand, and held Genis' body with the other. Everyone still watched, bound by an inexplicable desire to see what happened. Presea hesitated, loosened and retightened her grip on the shaft. Hinako covered her eyes. Finally, Presea looked away, and yanked. With a meaty sound, he spear came out, and blood spurted from the wound. She dropped the spear and grabbed the bottle Sheena had given her.

Taking out the cork, she spilled a liberal amount on either side of the wound. She worked some more water deep into the wound, her face only flinching slightly as she thrust her hand into his flesh. Almost immediately, the wound began to heal. It was like watching a time-lapse video. Before their eyes they could see muscle repair itself, blood vessels reconnect, until it was a solid red mass in his shoulder. Finally the skin spread and covered the wound. By the end of the whole process, there was no visible sign that anything had ever happened to him. There was a ripple of murmurs originating from the Earth people. Presea splashed the remaining water on Genis' face. His eyes fluttered open. "Augh," he groaned. "Am I, uh?" "You're fine," said Presea with a smile. Then, without another word, she leaned forward and kissed him on the lips. He embraced her, closing his eyes, entirely pleased that he had chosen a woman who could keep her cool and knew what to do in times like this. She had just saved his life, he realized, and that only made him kiss her all the more passionately.

While everyone else stared, then embarassedly left them alone, Genis and Presea continued to kiss each other. Zelos grumbled. "Why couldn't I be the one with a spear in my shoulder?" he complained to himself. "A little pain, then a I get to make out with a girl!" He sighed. "Some guys have all the luck." "Luck?" came a voice from behind him. Zelos nearly jumped out of his skin. "Whoa!" he said. "What was that about luck?" asked Colette. Zelos tried to catch his breath. Colette just stood there, smiling. Jeez, she's cute, he thought, but why does she have to do that?! "Uh, I was just saying that Genis had bad luck," said Zelos. "Being caught at the back of the group and getting hit by the spear and all." Colette thought about this a moment. "Well, I guess you could say we all have bad luck, and Genis had good luck," she said. When Zelos stared at her strangely, she added, "Well, I mean, it was bad luck we caught by that guy, and then someone would be hit by that spear. And then you would be saying someone else has bad luck. So no matter what, that thing would have attacked one of us, and it was good luck for Genis that he didn't get killed, and that he had all of us with him to take care of him." Zelos shook his head and smiled.

"That is just why I love you, Colette," he said. "You always look on the bright side." Colette blushed. "Well, so do you," she said. Zelos blinked. "Hey, you're right!" he exclaimed. "That's another thing we have in common! Wow, it's like we're meant for each other!" Colette smiled. "Hehe, yeah, I guess you're right!" she said. Zelos was caught off guard. "Well, I wasn't expecting that," he said. Colette bushed bright red. "Then I'll bet you weren't expecting this," she said. With that, she reached up, took Zelos' face in her hands, and brought it to hers, kissing him on the lips. Zelos' mind reeled. When she let him go, he fell over backwards. He sighed. "Wow," he said. "You're a great kisser, you know that? And that means a lot, coming from me. I've kissed a lot of girls in my time. I don't think I'll ever find out everything about you." Colette bent over him. She winked and stuck her tongue out. "Nope, not until we're married, you won't," she said, and skipped off. Zelos propped himself up on one elbow, watching her go. "I'm quite certain I'll never understand her," he whispered to himself. Then, breaking into a smile, he could not help but laugh until his sides hurt.

"Guys," said Colette. Everyone turned to look at her. "We're not alone," she said quietly. Yuan wasted no time. "Helmets on!" he hissed. They complied. "Don't be alarmed, but you're all about to turn black," he said over the radio. Pressing a button on the side of his helmet, the entire group began to shimmer and fuzz. Suddenly, the fuzz snapped into focus, and everyone was covered in something black. It seemed to be a projected image, for it had no weight, and when the group touched themselves, all they felt was their clothes or skin. "We couldn't obtain any cloaking devices, but this should give us an advantage," said Botta. "Oh, and don't worry about anyone hearing us. The helmets are soundproof." "Shh!" said Yuan. "Don't forget, if we talk too long, someone could break our signal. Now everyone, draw your weapons, hide, and stay alert! No more talking for now."

The group slunk back into the woods, and waited. There came a faint rustling sound, barely audible, but Colette heard it like it was branches breaking. Out into the clearing stepped a man (presumably). The person wore a fashionable outfit; jeans, black t-shirt, and a white coat. On his feet were boots, and covering them, metal greaves. He wore gauntlets made of the same material. Out of the whole group, only Kratos, Yuan, and Botta had seen it before. Cruxis was its sole maker.

To top it all off, the man had on a helmet, similar to the ones Yuan and Botta had provided, but its faceplate was white, and the rest was a deep blue.

The man stopped, surveyed the surroundings, and bent down. He examined the dirt closely. Standing up, he flicked an unseen switch on his mask. "I know you are here," said a mechanical voice coming from the man. It obviously was his, but was being masked. "Show yourselves, and perhaps I'll go easy on you." No one moved. "Let me talk to him," whispered Ryoko over the comm, quiet through instinct. "I have a plan." Yuan considered this. "Fine, but be careful," he replied. "And to talk to the outside, tap the chin of the helmet once, twice for voice masking like he's doing." Ryoko tapped the chin twice, and stood up. Taking a deep breath, she stepped into the clearing.

The man turned slowly to acknowledge her presence. She stopped five feet from him. "Where are the others?" he asked. "There are no others," replied Ryoko. "Thanks to you, they're all dead now." The man seemed to think this funny, for he laughed, his voice sounding tinny with the voice-alteration. "I see," he said. "What makes you think I killed them?" "Why else would you be here?" asked Ryoko. "You're looking for survivors, aren't you?" "Not survivors," said the man. "Survivor. There is only one I am looking for, and I am certain this person is not dead. If you will not tell me where he went, then you must die." Ryoko smirked behind her mask. "Then I shall die," she said, drawing her sword. "Tap the chin once more to revert back to silent mode," whispered Yuan over the radio. She did so. "I can take this guy," she said, watching him tighten his gloves. "Anyways, if it looks like I'm in trouble, you guys can help me out." "Somehow," said Shinnosuke, "I get the feeling he knows we're all here." "Yeah, but what can we do now?" said Ranma. "Let's see how this plays out."

Ryoko's heart pounded. She knew this would be a tough fight. She knew, in the pit of her soul, she might not be able to win. _But_, she thought to herself, _that's okay_. _We've learned that lesson, before, right Ryoko? That's what friends are for. _Something nagged at her. She felt something like deja vu, an indescribable feeling that she _knew _this person. But when she tried to pin it down, it slipped away. _Oh well,_ she thought, _too late for that now. I've got a match to fight!_

She lunged forward, striking in a vertical slash. The man blocked it easily and sent a punch at her face. Ryoko dodged and attempted to cut out his legs from under him. Her sword clanged off his greaves, and she kicked herself mentally. Physically, the man kicked her, sending her into a tree. She moaned with pain, but got up, wincing only slightly. "Okay, Ryoko, time to get serious," she said to herself.

She waited for the man to make the next move. He moved in slowly, then took another jab at her face. She dodged to the left, and the man brought his right leg up to knee her in the gut. She twirled gracefully out of the way and dealt an upward slash to his raised knee, causing him to flip over backwards. Apparently, he had on some under armor, for no blood stained his jeans. Ryoko stepped in quickly and placed the tip of her sword on the back of his neck. She tapped her chin once, forgetting to set the voice masker.

"One move and I put steel in your brain," she said. The man's body tensed. _Probably scared stiff,_ Ryoko thought gloatingly. Before Ryoko knew what happened, a loud metallic clang rang in her ears, and her sword was nowhere to be seen. The man jumped up and caught the surprised Ryoko by the head. Megumi started to get up. "Nobody move," said Yuan over the comm. Ryoko's heart pounded. _Holy shit, I'm gonna die, _she thought. Tears streamed down her face, her teeth chattered, and her legs trembled with fear. It was all she could do to keep herself from vomiting in horror. _No, please, no, don't let it end like this, _begged Ryoko of whatever gods were listening. The man grasped her helmet and pulled it off her head. The balck disappeared, leaving Ryoko exposed.

Try as she might, Ryoko could not pull herself together. She began to collapse, and the man caught her. Her knees knocked, and she sobbed pitifully. The group's hearts were in their throats. Ryoko looked up at the man, her vision blurry. He stared down at her. "What are you doing here?" he said at last. "How did you get mixed up in all this?" Ryoko could not reply, and only kept weeping. The man made a sound of disgust and looked away. "Pull yourself together, girl!" he said loudly. "This isn't at all like you, Ryoko!" Ryoko stared up at him in wonder, eyes still blurry and red. "Feh," he said, and set Ryoko down. She sat down and stared up at the man as he put his hands to his head. _Who could it be?_ she wondered. With a flash of insight, she realized who it was, and as his helmet came off, her suspicions were confirmed.

"Shizuma?!" she cried. Shizuma Kusanagi shook his mane of black hair and looked down at Ryoko. "I guess death is scary, huh?" he said. "I've seen it too many times to be afraid anymore. So, you wanna tell me where the others are now, huh babe?" Ryoko's face hardened. "Why?" she asked. "Isn't it obvious?" he said. "Your group goes raising hell with the most important human on Earth and you expect us not to do something about it? Now tell me, or maybe I really will kill you." Ryoko's face urned to stone. She saw her sword next to her. She stood up, grasped her sword and pointed it at him. "I'd love to see you try," she sid coldly. Shizuma looked at her. He began to laugh. "That's more like the Ryoko I and know and love!" he exclaimed. "However, I have no intention of fighting you, so put that sword away. I have an ulterior motive for coming here, and if you'll listen, I'll tell you what it is." Ryoko uncertainly lowered her weapon.

"And what motive is that?" she asked. Shizuma laughed. "I thought you'd never ask," he said.


	6. Journey to the Tower

Journey to the Tower

Shizuma looked around him. "So this is your group, huh?" he said appraisingly. "Not a bad selection, if I say so myself. So, you ready to hear my story?" Ryoko nodded. "Please," she said. He smiled. "Alright, y'all better sit down," he said. "This'll take a while."

"Around the time when Cruxis showed up in our world, I found them. They were posing as many things to learn about our world. One of the things they posed as was a street gang. They soon earned a reputation for being unbeatable. Naturally, I challenged them, and I won. I fought their leader, and won. Seeing my potential, he asked me to join his group. I turned him down, me being sort of a lone wolf and all, but his next proposal was irresistable. He told he where they were from and what they planned to do. I was a bit skeptical, but when he promised me I could rule the world, how could I refuse?

However, things became much darker once their operations began. Many unforeseen things occured, such as the plague. I feared for those I care about, and always lived in uncertainty of their conditions. And Cruxis began killing people too, often for no reason. I tolerated it, but it bothered me every day. Then, just recently, I was to take a trip to Symphonia and scout out the land. You should have been there. It was beautiful, and the people were so interesting. It made a fighter like me want to settle down and become respectable. I found Cruxis' plans one day. They were in one of the areas I had access to, and someone had left them out. I read about how Earth was to be destroyed, and what was going to happen to Symphonia. They intend to turn everyone into those lifeless angels I'm sure you've been told about. Internal discord also runs high. Those things sickened me. I knew I had to use my power and influence to stop them. So far, all I've been able to do is foil attempts on your lives, but it hasn't always been effective. The dragon-rider who speared the little guy was under my direct orders not to harm anyone. And the idiot back at the tower? Totally disobeyed my orders. People these days. Anyways, I have a plane that should totally cripple Cruxis and bring them crashing down, and I can describe it in one sentence."

Shizuma smiled. "And what is that?" asked Kuno. "Let me capture you and bring you in," he said simply. There was a murmur of surprise and disapproval. "Think about it!" he said. "It's perfect. I've always made sure I've looked like an obedient subordinate. They know nothing of my intentions. I've been loyal to them fully, and they trust me. If I capture you and bring you in, hey won't think twice about it. And if something happens in the holding cells, say, a lock breaks or a security door fails to shut all the way, no one will blame me. Then when they call me in to take care of you guys, I'll betray them openly when their trust in me is highest. I can ensure your safety until you reach the core. After that, things will be tough. If we can manage to get in the core, it'll lock us in there. Of course, everything is automated from the inside. They can't do anything to us, but on the same token, we can't get out. We have to know what we're gonna do once we get in there."

Yuan stroked his chin. "Sounds good to me," he said. Raine sighed. "Why am I surrounded by gullible saps?" she muttered to herself. "Did you say something?" asked Ryoga. Raine blushed. "Ah, no, it's nothing, really," she stammered. "So what are we gonna do once we get inside the core?" asked Ranma. "I mean, do we have any idea how to destroy it or stop it or whatever?" Shizuma sat up straight and slapped his knee. "Well," he said, "I did get a chance to see the plans, remember? They included specs on the core. Apparently, inside the core is a shaft, filled with molten metals swirling around a central rod. It's kinda supposed to imitate the inside of the planet, you know?" Raine wrote in her notepad. The group thought about what Shizuma told them silently. Herb rubbed his chin and stared off towards the afternoon sun. Ukyo played with a tuft of grass by her crossed legs while she tried to think of something. Genis felt like he was on to something, but he wasn't sure if it would work.

"Uh, I have an idea," said Genis. "Really?" said Colette. "Let's hear it," said Sheena. "Um, what if we could freeze the metal?" Genis suggested. Kratos let this sink in. "How would we do that?" he asked. Genis glanced around nervously, feeling a little stupid. "Well, I guess first we would have to cut off the core's source of heat," he said, "and then we could use magic, or a Summon Spirit, to freeze it." Botta nodded approvingly. "That sounds like it should work," he said, "however, we should have a back-up plan, in case our first plan fails." Zelos had a dark answer for this one, one he didn't particularly like, but he decided to venture it. "If all else fails," he said, "we could just let the metal out of the shaft. Cause havoc, save the world, right?" The group felt this suggestion weigh on heir minds. Even Lloyd and Colette felt depressed. "Well, don't worry about it too much," said Yuan. "That's only if we can't do it any other way. I'm sure we won't have to resort to that. So, if everyone's ready, let's be on our way."

Lloyd grumbled. "Why do we have to walk the hundred miles back to the tower?" he complained. Shizuma's brow furrowed. "Because," he said, "in the panic of your arrival, all the transporters leading to the tower were destroyed." Lloyd realized there wasn't much he could say to that, so he fell silent.

Presea looked disdainfully at her hands. She had forgotten to wash Genis' blood off her hands, and now she couldn't put her gloves back on. "Does anyone have some water?" she asked aloud. "Anything for the cutest girl I know!" said Zelos, handing her a canteen. Genis glared at Zelos angrily. She poured the water over her hands, carrying away the blood. When it was all gone, she capped the canteen and handed it back to Zelos. "Here," she said. Zelos carried it by a corner; it was covered in blood. "Ewww," he said, wrinkling his nose. Presea smirked at his reaction, and wiped off her wet hands on her dress. She then slipped her arms back into the gauntlets. She felt the familiar, reassuring weight and sighed. Presea turned as she heard a snapping noise behind her.

Ryoko threw back her head, chugging the beer as she walked. She lowered the can and breathed deeply. "Ahhh," she said. She relaized everyone was looking at her. "What?" she said. "Where did you get that?!" asked Asuka jealously. "I want some!" said Xiaoxing. Ryoko ignored the girl's pleas and blushed, scratching her head. "Well, you see, when stuff started getting crazy, the one thing my Aunt Madoka made sure she stocked up on was beer," she explained. Ryoko shook her head and snorted. "I got so wasted with that woman, it's a wonder I'm not a drunk because of her!"

"You sure you're not?" said Genis, which earned him a smack from his sister. Ryoko just laughed. "Riiiiight," said Shampoo.

Mousse walked next ot his wife, still feeling uneasy. They had all stored their weapons and helmets in the Wing Pack, along with the Rheiards and the EC, but Mousse felt unprotected without even a sword on him. He realized that they would not be allowed to enter the tower armed, but they were still a great distance from it. Someone tapped his shoulder, and he turned to find Lloyd walking behind him. "Uh, we were just curious," he said, "but my friends and I would like to know what those things you were using before." Mousse looked at them quizzically. "What things?" he asked puzzled. "You know," Lloyd said, pretending to hold something long with two hands, and making it buck in his hands. "Those things that make a really loud noise," said Colette. "Oh, you mean guns!" Mousse said, understanding at last. "Yeah, guns," said Lloyd. "What are they?"

Mousse thought about this a moment. "If I had one, I could explain it to you better," he said. Lloyd caught the hint and fetched one of them from the Wing Pack. It was a semi-automatic pistol. Mousse took it from Lloyd, ejected the clip, and triple checked the chamber before beginning to explain it to them. "This," he said, pointing to the gun, "is a gun. More specifically, it is a semi-automatic pistol, or handgun. A gun is a device that uses gunpowder to fire small metal objects, called bullets, to inflict wounds or damage on targets." Raine wrote in her notebook, obviously fascinated with this technology. "What is 'gunpowder'?" she asked. Mousse smiled, still amazed at some of the things they didn't know. _They're from another world,_ he reminded himself. "Gunpowder is a highly volitile substance that explodes or catchs fire when exposed to a spark or a flame," he explained.

"Now, the way guns used to work was by stuffing a pack of gunpowder and a round metal bullet down a tube. Then the gunman would cock the gun, meaning he pulled down the hammer, something liked this thing, and then he would pull the trigger, which would release the hammer. As the hammer went up, a piece of metal in attached to it would strike against a piece of flint, sending sparks into the barrel, this thing here, which would ignite the gunpowder and send the bullet flying. It was called a flintlock. There were other variations, of course, but now we use a cartridge system, and with the advent of a little thing called an ignitor cap, and guns are far more efficient. See, inside this cartridge here, there is the bullet at the top, and gunpowder down at the down, sitting on top of the ignitor cap. Now, when I pull the trigger, it sends a little bar into the back of the cartridge, where the cap is, and basically what it does is pop the cap, which sends off sparks and blows up the powder which shoots the bullet. Then the gun shoves out the old cartridge and replaces a new one, and I'm ready to shoot again, all in about a second. This gun is called a semi-automatic because once it's cocked, squeezing the trigger once fires one bullet. To fire another bullet, I have to squeeze it again. On a fully automatic gun, you squeeze and hold the trigger and it keeps shooting until you let go or it runs out." Raine furiously scribbled notes down, intensely immersed in this subject. Lloyd and the other off-worlders listened in awe as he continued to explain about the use and history of firearms.

As the afternoon sun turned orange, fading behind the horizon, they reached the crest of a hill. Shizuma walked in front. "Ah!" he said, pushing aside some shrubs. "Now that's a sight I might miss when this is over." The others came up behind him, and gasped at what they saw.

The tall hill, or short mountain, overlooked a vast plain of grassy, rolling hills. About a hundred miles away there ran a ribbon of water, glimmering in the fading light. And, right in the middle of their vision, was the tallest tower the Earth had ever seen. Reaching up into space was a ridiculously thin blue tower, the same width bottom to top. It had three supporting pylons at the bottom, where it actually was thinner than the rest. The tower gleamed radiantly, its beautiful architecture astounding, though quite difficult to see at this distance. "It would be beautiful if the people who made it weren't evil," said Shizuma mournfully.

For a while the group just gazed at it. Then, entirely without humor, Ukyo said, "I think the Space Needle lost its right to that name." Everyone looked at her and laughed. She shook her head. "What?" she asked, confused. "What did I say?!"

Shizuma held up a hand, trying to keep his mouth straight. "Okay, everyone, listen up!" he said. "From here on out, we've gotta be extra careful. Members of Cruxis freely roam the plain. Feel free to talk when we're alone, but when you see one of them, you let the group know. It'll look natural if you look around some, so go ahead and do it pretty much all the time, so we can keep a lookout. I know there are some things you want to discuss. And when we come in contact with one of them, you remember to act like my captives, because, well, that's what we're pretending, right? We don't have any handcuffs, so we'll just have to have some of my fellow undercover agents pretend to guard you, okay? Oh, and you should probably give me the Wing Pack. Captives aren't usually allowed to keep their weapons and escape vehicles. So, any questions?"

Kodachi raised her hand. "Do we have to go right now?" she asked. When no one replied, she added, "I mean, it'll be dark soon, and uh, I was thinking, we could wait until it gets night, and then it wouldn't be so easy to see what we were doing, so yeah." "But don't the monsters see better at night?" asked Lloyd. "They do in the dark part of the world," said Shizuma. "Here, humans, half-elves, and the like are the main types of workers and guards, since it is daylight here a good deal. So, really, it would be a good idea to wait a bit. Good idea, uh, Kodari, was it?" Kodachi blushed slightly. "It's Kodachi," she said, "and thank you." Shizuma repeated her name to himself. "Sorry," he said, "but Ihaven't had the time to really introduce myself, you know?" Lime laughed. "Well, then," he said, "how 'bout some dinner?"

Raine felt it her obligation to cook tonight, and she prepared a dish of ramen. The group of offworlders looked dubious, and hesitated, but the others obliviously began to eat. "Uh, if it isn't good, you don't have to eat it," said Raine. "I'm not too confident in my cooking..." "I'm sure it's great!" said Akane. _She sounds like I used to,_ thought Akane as she brought some ramen up to her mouth with her chopsticks. She chewed and swallowed. "Not bad," said Akane. The other Earthlings agreed that it was quite good. "Really?" said Raine. "I gotta taste this to believe it," said Genis, and took a mouthful. He swallowed it, and waited. Suddenly he looked astoundedly at the bowl. "Raine!" he exclaimed. "This is delicious! I'm so proud of you!" He hugged his older sister. "Congratulations, Professor," said Kratos.

Lloyd looked at his father. "No way," he said jokingly. "My dad? A sense of humor?!" He punched Kratos in the arm, who smiled and laughed softly. The entire group of Symphonians looked at Kratos even more incredulously than they did at Raine. "Was Kratos just laughing?" asked Colette. "I think so," said Yuan. They watched as Lloyd tried to tackle Kratos. Kratos dodged it and drew his sword. "Now you asked for it, Lloyd," he said and raised his sword up. Lloyd flinched, and Kratos stopped. He put his sword away, and sat down with a shake of his head and a chuckle. The Earthlings couldn't help but feel they were missing out on something, but fortunately Regal filled them in afterwards.

As they finished their meal, the last fading rays of light disappeared and the land was plunged into a very light darkness, due to the stars and moon, for a few moments. Then, one by one, concentric rings of lights turned on, far away, around the tower. The sight made something click in Hinako's brain. "Oh yeaaaahhh," she said. "Didn't Mr. Kratos say that the tower was way far away in a city? I haven't seen a city yet." "True, but the tower is so tall you are forgetting how far away we are," Kratos said. "Those lights could give you an estimate of how large the city is. We're still about a hundred miles away." Mousse stood up and sighed. "Well, then," he said. "It's about time we got moving, huh?"

The group followed a narrow trail down the steep slope of the mountain that had many switchbacks and large steps. "So, Shizuma," said Sheena to the man leading them down, "I can't help but wonder one thing; who is your leader now?" Shizuma stopped, looked back at her. Then he looked into the trees, and wiped his brow. "You know, I don't know his name," he said finally. "Huh. Yeah, I'm not sure what his name is, but he's tall and he's got blond hair. Blue eyes. Looks American. Actually, you know, once I think I saw a case of his that had two letters inscribed on it in gold. They might have been his initials." "What were they," said Sheena, an uneasy feeling creeping into her stomach. She prayed it wouldn't be those two letters. Shizuma thought a moment. "M, Y," he said at last. _Shit, _ thought Sheena. A murmur went up from the Symphonians. Lloyd glanced at his friends. "I'll give you three guesses who it is," he said. "It's not possible," said Presea. "Indeed it would seem," said Regal. "What's up?" asked Shizuma.

"We know your leader," said Genis. "And he's dead," added Lloyd. "Those initials stand for Mithos Yggdrasil," said Raine. "He was he previous leader of Cruxis. Lloyd is right. We killed Mithos to stop him from taking away the Great Seed." Shizuma thought hard about this, taking a seat. "No," he said. "No. It's not Mithos." "What do you mean?" asked Yuan.

"I know who you're talking about," said Shizuma. "That guy _is_ dead. Gone. There are portraits of him in the tower, especially in the head honcho's office. No. But I think I may know who our new leader is." "Who?" asked Lloyd. "And how?" wondered Sheena. "That case that my boss had," said Shizuma, "he said it was given to him by his father. I'm certain now. The current leader of Cruxis is Mithos Yggdrasil's son."

Kratos turned to Yuan. "I was not aware our companion ever had relations with a woman," Kratos said. "Nor was I," said Yuan. "Could it be possible he's a clone?" ventured Botta. "Unlikely," replied Kratos with a frown. "I remember Mithos specifically order research not to be done on cloning. Something that actually went against his moral code, I suppose." "I wonder who his wife was?" said Colette. "I don't know," said Kratos. "But we'll likely find out. Let's keep moving. We've got a ways to go."

The group continued on to the base of the mountain. Stopping at the foot of it, they reseted for a moment. Raine surveyed their surroundings casually, looking around at the landscape. Something caught her eye, and she looked over at it. She suddenly screamed, and put a hand over her mouth. She trembled, tears seeping out of her awestruck eyes. "What's wrong, Raine?!" asked Genis, concerned. "Hello, Raine? Raine?" He followed her gaze, and saw it. His jaw dropped. "What the...?" he whispered. Everyone came over to see what was wrong, and stopped short, staring at the object in front of them. All of them but Shizuma stared at it, mystified. "What do you think it means?" whispered Presea, as if it might hear her. "I dunno," said Lloyd, his typical wild imagination at work. Shizuma was the last to come over and look. "Oh, sorry," he said, wincing, looking away uncomfortably. "I'm sorry you had to see that. I should have warned you about that. Cruxis has been doing some work with light and molecule structure. I didn't think we'd actually see a sample out here, so I didn't tell you. I should have. Sorry."

What they stared at was not unusal in shape or size, or form. It was an sheet of construction paper, actually, caught under a rock. It was completely normal in every way except one, and in that way it had been indescribably altered. The property that had been altered was color. It is sufficive to say it was one no one there besides Shizuma had ever seen that color before; Cruxis had discovered it only recently. But, it was impossible to describe, so it won't be attempted. It would like trying to describe green to a blind person, like saying green is the color of grass. Too bad the person's never seen grass. So it would be to say to anyone who hasn't seen this color that tarslon (as Cruxis called it) is the color of a fryljard (a lizard-like creature in another dimension).

While the others stared at the piece of paper, Shizuma began to wonder about its presence. What was it doing here? He remembered how guardedly Cruxis had kept its little secrets like this and the three headed reaper monster. Why would they let something like this out in the open? He noticed Raine starting to creep forward towards it.

Now that he looked at it, it almost seemed put there purposely, as if it was meant to mark something. Raine edged towards the paper carefully, as if it might explode suddenly. Shizuma thought he rememebered that Cruxis had recently made a reminder about tarslon colored objects. Weren't they supposed to mean something? He racked his brain, trying to remember what they meant.

And then it hit him. Raine reached for the paper with trembling hands. "Lady, don't!" shouted Shizuma. But it was too late. She had tugged at the paper already, and suddenly her foot sank into the ground. "Huh?" she said. There was the sound of rocks splintering, and the ground caved in. Raine's yell of surprise was soon lost among the sound of falling rock and dirt. "Raaaiine!!!" screamed Genis, looking desperately down the yawning hole in the ground. "Professor!" yelled Lloyd as he joined Genis on the ground. "Dammit," he whispered. "Out of the way," commanded Herb from behind them. They scurried away from before him as he walked quickly up to the hole. He removed his heavy armored outer coat and laid it on the ground. Then, without a moment's hesitation, he dived in after her.

The wind whipped at Herb's face, but he did not mind. He concentrated his mind on his body and found his source of power, of ki. The familiar pink aura surrounded him, and he willed himself to move faster. All around him rocks fell from the sides, and he had to avoid these by split seconds.

He saw the cloud of rocks and dirt that fell from the opening, and headed towards it. With his keen dragon-vision, he could see Raine falling right above the mass of earth. She seemed undamaged. Terrified, but not hurt. He pushed the ki to make him move even faster, and the glow around him intensified a bit. Catching a glint of metal falling on the way down, he snagged it and quickly stored it in his pocket. It felt somehow familiar, though he didn't waste any time to look at it.

Raine was nearly in his grasp, and he extended his arms. "Give me your hands!" he yelled above the wind and falling rocks. She shakingly complied, and he grasped her hands firmly. Herb pulled her in and locked his arms around her shoulders. Then, reversing the direction of the ki, he stopped himself in midair. They floated there, and he examined her. "Are you alright?" he asked, concerned. She nodded. "Y-yes," she said. "Th-thank you." They looked down, watching the rocks as they fell. Abuptly, they appeared to strike the bottom about a half-mile down. But then, the rocks shifted somehow. "Are the rocks moving?" asked Herb. "No," said Raine, the truth dawning on her. "The thing they're laying on is."

They continued to stare as a red light appeared among the rocks below, and soon a great smoke began to rise from it. "I think we should move," said Raine. "Yeah," said Herb, still watching the fire, "yeah I think we should." Herb turned and looked up at the exit, nearly invisible in the darkness.

Firing up his ki, Herb launched himself upwards, and with an inhuman roar behind him, it suddenly got hotter. Raine looked down and saw a beast of immense size following them. It was wreathed in flame and smoke, and it had wings like a bat and a reptilian head. The whole thing looked like it was made out of the spewings of a volcano. "No rush, but you might want to pick up the pace a little," said Raine, eyes wide. Herb took the hint and powered up his ki, and the aura intensified and got deeper. He looked back, and to his dismay found the demon-like creature keeping pace easily. It seemed to make out of itself a flaming sword, and it cocked its arm to slash. Herb poured his energy into his speed. His aura deepened to a bright red. The sword struck the wall behind Herb and Raine, and a thunderous boom reverberated in the shaft, causing rocks to fall out. Herb didn't heed them.

"We have to go faster!" yelled Raine. Herb tried his best to comply, but he was already going at one hundred percent. "Well, then," he whispered to himself, "it's time to go one-ten." He drained power out of every system he could find in himself. He knew it could kill him, but he had to save the Professor. She was more valuable than him, he knew.

Herb could see the exit rapidly grow wider as he approached it. _Just a little farther, and then you can rest,_ Herb told himself. He did not care if he never woke from that rest; he just needed it. Finally they burst through the exit, the ki surrounding Herb deep blood-red. Herb set Raine down safely on the ground. He seemed to see everything in slow-motion, and all the sounds of battle roaring seemed far off in the distance. He saw Raine before him, scared, but unhurt. He smiled. "My job here," he said, almost blissfully, "is done. Now, I may rest." Herb dropped to his knees, and slumped over onto the ground with a sigh. "Herb?" He heard Raine's voice very dimly as his vision darkened, and remembered one last thing. "It's in my pocket," he whispered. He felt something slide against his leg, and then a rain-drop against his face. And that was all.

Raine slid the object out of Herb's pocket. It was the Wing Pack. She might have a chance, she knew, if she worked fast. Quickly, she accessed the Wing Pack's inventory, selected her staff, and confirmed her entry. The box shot out a ray of light onto the ground, and Raine's staff materialized in it. She grabbed it and knelt beside Herb. He was not breathing.

She held her rod above him and chanted the words she memorized. "Rescue this soul from purgatory," she whispered. "Resurrection!" A white light came from her staff and engulfed Herb. His eyes opened, and he drew a deep breath. But still, she could sense his power was weak and fading. If Hinako was available, she would have had her siphon ki into him, but she was busy fighting the monster. A crack of thunder rumbled across the sky, and rain began to fall in sheets.

There was only one spell she knew that might work, and she would have to revise it a little. She recited the words, and said, "Powers of creation, grant him the breath of life, revitalize!" A blue aura surrounded him, and he breathed deeply again, and sat up slowly. He moaned, and almost fell backwards. Raine caught him, and propped him up. "How do you feel?" she asked gently, ignoring the rain and the battle raging behind them. "Bad," he said, clutching his head. "I have a migraine and I feel like I never want to move again, I'm so sore. But you saved my life." Raine smiled. "You saved mine," she said. "We're even." He smiled, and laid back, falling instantly asleep. She held him, and watched the battle end.

Herb burst out of the hole in the ground carrying Raine. A cheer rose from the group, except Shizuma. He knew what was coming next. Even as the firey beast erupted from the fissure, he felt confident that with their weapons they would, they would...

Shizuma patted himself down. _Damn! _he thought. _What did I do with them?! _"Uh, Shizuma?" asked Akane shakily. "Got our weapons?" "Working on it," said Shizuma with a frown. "Hold him of a minute, okay?" "You don't have the Wing Pack?!" exclaimed Genis. "Don't worry, I'll remember before long," Shizuma reassured them, unreassuringly. "Anyway, we can take this guy anyway!"

Ranma clenched a fist. "Yeah!" he said. "Come on, you guys! Hinako! Come here a minute. I got a plan." He whispered hurriedly his plan to her. "Okay!" she said when she understood it. Ranma advanced on the flame wreathed monster, positioning himself right where he wanted himself...

"Now!" he shouted, and began to run in a circle around the creature. "Aku, ja, byo, tsu, ma!" said Hinako, waving her arm in a circle. The demon's aura flowed into Hinako, causing her to grow. The beast fell to one knee, surprised. Ranma continued to run around in a spiral, until he was practically face to face with the humongous thing. "Hiryu shoten ha!" cried Ranma, driving his fist up into the air, as if trying to uppercut the monster but being too short to do so. The superheated air spun around by Ranma clashed with his icy cold spirit, and the swirling air formed itself into a massive tornado. The dragon, however, didn't seem affected at all. If anything, it was only angrier than before. It spread its wings and roared in their faces.

"Any time now," said Ryoga to Shizuma, who was busy tracing his steps of the day. Finally, he seemed to remember something. "Keep its attention a little while longer," he said, dashing off. Ryoga shook his head, and sighed. _Whatever, _he thought, as he saw something fall in front of him. He looked down, only to have something hit his head. Then, the whole sky tore open, and rain poured from the clouds that had quietly gathered in the evening. A hissing sound drew his attention. The first thing he noticed was that everyone was busy distracting the monster, and he felt stupid for just standing there. The second thing he noticed was that the dragon had gone out.

That was what it looked like, anyhow. The rain had evidently quenched its fires, and now it was something of petroleum. It looked like coal, dripping with oil. A great steam rose from it, and the red showing from cracks in the skin from its gullet proved it was not fully extinguished. Ryoga shook his head, clearing his thoughts. _What am I still doing here? _he wondered, and went to help his friends.

Shizuma slowed to a trot as he approached Raine and Herb. Raine was holding Herb in her arms, her eyes exaiming him. "Raine!" Shizuma shouted over the downpour. She turned her head to look at him. "Do you have the Wing Pack?" Shizuma asked. Raine shook her head no, and closed her eyes. Suddenly her eyes opened again and she snapped her fingers. She reached into Herb's pocket and produced the Wing Pack. She handed it to Shizuma, who took it gratefully, and dashed off to rejoin the battle.

Opening the Wing Pack, Shizuma ordered a shotgun of Mousse's. Directly ahead of him, he saw the oily reptile shake off several attackers, and threw almost everyone to the ground with a sweep of its tail. Then, it reared up and prepared to strike at Xiaoxing with a clawed hand. Shizuma aimed the shotgun at its arm, hoping the gun was loaded, and squeezed the trigger. The gun clicked. Frantic, he tried it several more times, but it only clicked. He could only watch in horror as Xiaoxing awaited her fate.

Xiaoxing held up her arms to protect herself, knowing she couldn't dodge the attack. She knew she would probably die, but she had to try to live, to help her friends. Through her arms she saw the claw rush in upon her, and she closed her eyes, terrified. Something flashed against her eyelids , accompanied by a loud crack, as if of thunder. Then there was no sound but the rain.

Tenatively, she opened her eyes and lowered her arms. Where the dragon stood, or had stood, there was now an oily spot on the ground that was quickly being washed away. She looked around for an explanation, and saw Regal, standing in an attack stance, arms out in front of himself. His eyes were wide, and slowly he returned to a normal standing position. Sadly, he looked at his hands, and smiled. "Regal," said Xiaoxing, "you are one who killed the thing?" He looked at her, and nodded. "Thank you!" she said. "That is amazing!" He glanced off to the side. "You are welcome," Regal said uncomfortably. "But, if you'll excuse me, I have...much to think about." With that, he turned and walked off to contemplate his actions, past and future.

The warriors stood still, at a loss for words. The rain poured down on their heads. "Well!" said Yuan with a cough. "I guess this we be a good time to make camp!" Shizuma shook his head. "No," he said. "If one of Cruxis spies saw us, our plan would be ruined. I am afraid we must continue. Get Regal and let's go."

Raine chose to retrieve Regal. She found him sitting beside a tree. He was gazing intently at his hands. Finally he sighed, and got up. "Alicia," he whispered, barely audible. "Today I fulfill my promise to you." With that he bent his arms and the handcuffs snapped off, broken as if they were cardboard. Regal turned to see Raine watching him. "Now I am no longer a burden," he said. Raine smiled. "I am truly happy for you," said Raine. Hesitantly, she added, "And I'm sure Alicia is too." Regal smiled, and nodded. "Are we leaving?" he asked. Raine said it was. Regal walked along with Raine back towards the others. _Alicia didn't want me to suffer, _he thought. _So I hope she doesn't disapprove of me starting over. _With that he slipped his hand into Raine's. She had no objections.

Raine nor Alicia.

The group trudged miserably through the mire. The rain had not let up for hours, and the mud was sloshing around their feet. Mint and Lime took turns carrying their master, Herb. The group looked as miserable as prisoners; just like they were supposed to.

Eventually, the rain let up, the skies cleared out, and their spirits brightened a little at the sight of the moon and stars. Raine remembered the qustion she had. "Um, Shizuma?" she said. He glanced back at her from the front of the party. "Why was that piece of paper there? And what was the hole with the dragon in it about?" Shizuma grinned, glad to have a chance to finally flaunt his knowledge.

As he told it, Cruxis was currently involved in several projects to find potential weapons for the assault on Symphonia. The color had been an accident, as a result of a the project that created that monster Cruxis called the Balrog. The animal's features were similar to that of the creature from Tolkien's books, and so the name had stuck. Unforunately for Cruxis, the beast proved to be rebellious, unwilling to obey its creator. After causing much damage, Shizuma explained, the Balrogs were captured and sealed off in several magi-technology sealed holes. They repressed the Balrog's powers and prevented it from flying out. The key was the tarslon colored objects. They marked the locations of the holes, as well as served as the locking mechanism for the seal. Since there was a limited amount of Cruxis half-elves left after their defeat, nearly all of them were promoted to higher ranks, making hem more important. For this reason, the keys were genetically coded to only open the seal if tugged on by a half-elf. That was why the ground had abruptly opened up after Raine tugged on the paper.

Raine, fascinated, wrote this down in her slightly damp notebook. Shizuma nodded, and smiled. "Any time, babe," he said. He surveyed their surroundings, and called the march to a halt with his hand. "We're coming up on the more esoteric defenses," he said seriously. "We may pass for a ways before we are noticed, but in any case, keep an eye out. We could meet a servant of Cruxis any moment from here on, so no talking, and try to look defiant. It's a good prisoner look for you guys. We clear?" "Yeah," said Ryoko, "but since when do you know the word esoteric?"

Shizuma flushed. "H-hey!" he exclaimed. "I know a lotta stuff! Ugh! Just, keep quiet, and, let's go!" He stormed off, and they followed him, shaking their heads. But they followed his advice, speaking only seldom and softly to each other.

Soon enough they came upon an outpost. "Keep cool," said Shizuma under his breath, "and remember to look defiant or hopeless. One or the other." As they approached it, a light turned on and blazed in their direction. They held up their hands to block the light, and came to a halt. "Who's there?" asked a gravelly voice. "Who do you think?" replied Shizuma coldly. An older human came forward into the light and squinted at them. Then he saw Shizuma, and immediately made a hasty bow. "My apologies, Commander Kusanagi," said the man nervously. "I meant no disrespect. It is my job to ask questions, you know. So, who do we have here?" He asked this last question with a gesture to the large group of people following him.

"You heard about the security breach in Japan?" asked Shizuma. He pointed a shaky finger at them. "These are them?" the man asked, incredulous. "And you caught all of them all by yourself?!" Shizuma smirked. "Well, I did have a little help," he admitted, and made a signal with his hands. Out of the shadows several cloaked figures emerged and stood silently, wraithlike, their armored hands resting on the hilts of swords whose points were driven into the ground. The sentry shivered. "I see," he said uncomfortably. "Well then, carry on. I knew you would be the one to do it, if anyone could. Go ahead and go. Shall I alert the other stations to your arrival?" Shizuma shook his head. "No," he said. "There's no need. They'll find out soon enough. Give them a surprise, too." The sentry grinned, saluted, and walked back into his guardhouse. A moment later, the light turned off, for which the cloaked warriors were glad. A loudspeaker crackled on. "Alright, sir," came the sentry's hard voice, "the energy shield is down, and you may proceed. I'll raise it after your rear guards pass through. Until next time." The speaker died, leaving the group of friends in near total silence. Then, Shizuma led them past a pair of tall vertical bars, connected by a horizontal cross piece at the top and the bottom.

"What are those?" asked Lloyd as they passed by the bars of metal. "Look behind you and you'll see it in a moment," said Shizuma. Lloyd looked over his shoulder. He saw the last black knight pass through them. A few seconds after that, a blue light began to emanate from both side pillars. They each sent a blue wave of energy to the center between them, where they collided and sent crackles of electricity back to the pillars and the top and bottom parts. Then there was nothing, and it looked as if nothing had happened. "That was an energy gate," explained Shizuma. "Now, nothing can pass through it. The guard must lower and raise the shield inside that rectangle for anything to pass through." Aoi peered up at the sky. "But there's no reason for a top piece," she said, "unless there is something above it. How far up does the shield go?" Shizuma scratched his chin, wondering how to answer that question.

"Well, think of it this way," he said. "Have you ever tried blowing a bubble inside of a bubble using a straw? It's kind of like that. There's a bunch of energy domes closing off this area, and they're arranged like bubbles within bubbles; the next shield is shorter and narrower. The Tower of Salvation is like the straw, because it penetrates the shields and goes way, way up high, where the shields can't reach. But it's okay, since the walls of the tower have no way to get in and are nearly indestructible."

Lloyd gazed up into the night sky. With every step, he felt that they were irrevocably drawing near to their goal. Lloyd didn't know why, but for some reason, this filled him with unease. Lloyd stared blankly ahead, unable to shake his feelings of doubt. They passed silently while the moon rose.

Besides going through a few more gates, the group marched from that point on uneventfully. They uncomfortably passed through the (almost)ghost town of Buda, and soon came to the outskirts of Austin. The tower loomed menacingly over them, and most had to make a conscious effort not to crane their necks.

Some of the buildings were occupied by minions of Cruxis, others were used for storage. A number of half-elves and humans stalked the dimly lit streets, whispering to each other as the party headed by their commander marched down the broad, broken road. Occasionally a floating vehicle would hover by and slow down to get a better look. Ranma was desirous of these.

At long last, they reached the tower. "Excellent work!" said the guard who checked Shizuma's retinal scan. "You captured the Key and the troublemakers! The boss will be proud for sure!" Shizuma said nothing, but grinned at him as he led his "captives" into the transporter. Shizuma dialed up the code for the detention center, and hit "SEND". Upon arrival, he dismissed the guards and called in a set of his own rebels. The knights he allowed to remain in a back room, and he locked everyone up in cells by twos.

"All right, you guys," said Shizuma. "We had best take a long rest before we try anything. Let's see, it's six now, so I'll come back around five, we'll work out our plan, and a six we'll launch it. Everyone cool with this?" They shook their heads yes. "Then I'll see you guys in eleven hours," he said. With that, he retired to some adjacent quarters, and slept.

Shizuma awoke at three thirty. He took a long draught from a bottle of energy drink, and realized he felt refreshed and up for anything. After washing up, he went over to his comm unit. He punched in a number, and pressed the call button. The receiver, a tall armored humanoid with four mouth parts, answered almost immediately. "What is it, Commander?" asked the alien in a deep voice, his English flawless.  
"It's about the weapons you've supplied us with, Arbiter," said Shizuma.

"What of them?" asked the Arbiter.

"Is there a way to control the failsafes on them?"

At this the Arbiter laughed. "Sometimes I think you would make a great Covenant leader," he said.

Shizuma was confused. "Huh?" he said.

"What I mean is, you think the same way the Prophets do," explained the Arbiter. "Anyhow, yes, there is a way to manipulate the weapons."

"How?"

The Arbiter glanced around, as if to check if the coast is clear. "This is a closely guarded secret, you must realize," said the Arbiter in a low tone.

Shizuma straightened. "I understand," he said. "I swear on my honor to protect your secret. I know what they mean to the Covenant."

The Arbiter seemed satisfied by this, and he made what looked like a grimace to Shizuma, who understood it to be a smile. "Very well," said the Arbiter. "I trust you. You have done nothing to show dishonesty, and you have helped us greatly. In order to turn the weapons on and off, you must broadcast a specific signal on a precise frequency to shut down and turn on the weapons' reactors. I'll transmit these to you now. Hook up a data pad." Shizuma did so, while the Arbiter sat down and searched on a desktop computer for the files. "May I inquire as to the use of this?" asked the Arbiter when the transmission was done.

Shizuma cast his gaze downward. "Cruxis is a corrupt operation," he said quietly. "This information will help bring about their downfall." The Arbiter looked sympathetic. "I see," he said. "Your tatic is a well played one, however. Betrayal from a loyal, high-ranking official is hardly to be expected." Shizuma looked back up, a smile on his lips.

"That's what I'm counting on," he said, and signed off.

Lloyd woke last, as usual. Sheena shook him awake, and he fell off his bunk. "Wha?" he asked with his face mushed into the floor, still half-asleep. "Come on, it's five already!" exclaimed Sheena. Lloyd lifted himself slowly off the floor, smacking his lips, and blinking deliberately with half-open eyes. "What happens at five?" he asked sleepily. "Shizuma's gonna brief us, remember?" said Sheena, annoyed. Lloyd tried to remember what brief even meant. "He's, gonna, put underwear on us?" he asked. Sheena growled. "Rrrr, you're hopeless," she muttered.

"Alrighty mates, let's get this show on the road!" said Shizuma loudly as he entered the room. "We got one hour to come up with a plan. I've got means to implement it, but I'm gonna need you guys' help to think up a plan. Miz Raine, I'm looking in your direction in particular. So, anyone got any ideas? Basically, we have to stage a jail break, then I'll pursue you guys into the core, then we have to destroy it somehow." The "prisoners" thought quietly to themselves while Shizuma eagerly waited.

"How about this," said Ranma slowly after much deliberation. "Say you're in a meeting, then while you're gone, we'll 'steal' the key, knock the lone guard out, and free ourselves. The guard will also carry the Wing Pack, and we'll recover our equipment. Then, we'll sneak out, unnoticed by your guards who turn their backs on us. After that we go straight to the core, let ourselves in, and in doing so will trigger some sort of alarm. Then Shizuma will follow us in, and the door will close, trapping us inside for us to work out a way to destroy the core."

The others let this sink in. "How would we steal the key and knock the guard out?" asked Kuno. "Perhaps he could walk too close to a cell," suggested his sister. "And what will happen once inside the core?" asked Genis nervously. "I would assume there is no way out?" said Presea. "That would be an unfavorable situation." "Indeed," said Regal. Lloyd snapped his fingers. "Couldn't Sheena teleport one of us out to open the doors?" he wondered. "She used to do it all the time to herself, so..." Sheena shook her head. "I doubt it," she said. "If I can't see where I'm sending someone, they could land stuck inside a wall." "Well, it's true, that could happen if you tried to teleport into one of the surrounding machinery areas," said Shizuma, " But if you send us down the main entrance, it's a pretty straight shot. Just a long hallway from the thick outside wall to the core." "So there is only a small space between the outer wall and the first door of the hallway?" asked Sheena. Shizuma nodded. "No good," said Sheena, shaking her head again. "I'm not a precision teleporter. I can't guarantee that the person would land right in that small space. He might end up inside a door, or a wall, or outside the wall. And then we're screwed, since Ranma there is the only one who can open them. Brute force would be useless, right? Aren't the doors nearly indestructible?" "Yup," said Shizuma. "There isn't anything that could break them down, save maybe a miniature sun, or a high power laser, or something that could melt them."

"Could we fly out, perhaps?" suggested Botta doubtfully. Shizuma tilted his head and made a face. "Maaaayyybe," he said. "But the leftover electromagnetism from the core could completely fry the Rheiards, and we'd crash. just like that. That'll be Plan B, if all else fails."

"Now that we have Plan B," said Midori, "how about coming up with a Plan A?" Another minute or so of silence passed. "What about the exhaust vents?" said Aoi, who remembered their night at the cave. Shizuma slapped his knee. "I'll be damned, girl," he said with a laugh. "I completely forgot about them! Those actually shouldn't be too hard to get through! So, let me see, what would we have to do to get out through them?" He searched his memory, trying to remember the schematics he had seen. "Ah, yeah!" he said after a moment. "I remember know. All there is barring our way are two force fields, and a series of tough metal grates. Fortunately, they're mainly built to withstand heat, not force. So we should be able to break them down as we pass through." Raine pondered over the things he had said, and something was bothering her. "One thing I don't understand," she said finally. "How can we be in the core and not die?" "Well, it's not hot in there," said Shizuma. "The heat from the core has to go somewhere, so it's all channeled directly into, the, exhaust, lines..." He swore.

"Actually, I think this might work to our advantage," said Yuan. "What if we blocked off the vessels carrying the heat to the exhaust lines? Wouldn't the core overheat and destroy the tower?" Shizuma narrowed his eyes and smiled at Yuan. "I like the way you think," Shizuma said with a wag of a his finger. "And I know just how to do it, too. I recall that the only controls to anything dealing with the core are located inside the core, to prevent anyone screwing with them. Included among those are the force field controls, the heat venting controls. There might be a few lockouts, failsafes, and other security measures we might have to bypass, but I'm sure with my knowledge and Raine's hacking skills we can get through them."

"So," said Kratos, "what exactly is the plan?"

"All right," said Shizuma at ten 'til six, "let's review the plan one last time. First, I'll leave for a meeting in a conference room not far from the entrance to the core. I'll have one of my men cause a malfunction in the security cameras in your area, but turning off too many would cause suspicion. Anyhow, while I'm gone, Lloyd will pretend to faint against the jail bars. My guard will play along, coming over to you to see what happened. Then, you'll snatch his key from his left side, your right, and sock him in the face. He'll take it, so don't worry. Then unlock yourself and take the Wing Pack from his desk after you free the others with the key. Quickly distribute the weapons, and head for the core hallway. My guards will turn a blind eye to you as far as possible, but when some real guards show up, they'll have no choice but to attack in order to pull this off. Once you start taking enemy fire, press your switch. It'll activate a light on my transmitter, and I'll shut off their weapons. At that point, open the doors and I'll meet you there, where I'll chase you down after ordering my men to stay back. The doors will shut behind us, and we'll have the core to ourselves.

Once inside, Raine and I will hack the computers and shut down the force fields, and then the heat vents. Then we'll climb down the ladder and, with a little help from our friend Taro, break down the grates and go as fast as we can down the exhaust vents. However, when the core goes critical, we'll have to get on the Rheiards, at which point we'll fly down the shaft as fast as possible with Regal blasting down the grates. If everything goes according to plan, we'll get through this without much trouble, Cruxis will believe every step of it, well, until I lock myself in, and we can return the world to the way it should be. Ok, so, I'm going to go my meeting now, and uh, just, get ready. Good luck!"


	7. The End of All Things

The End of All Things

There was a dull thud as Lloyd punched the guard in the side of the head. "Sorry," he whispered as he took the key from the man's side. "No problem," he whispered back. Lloyd quickly unlocked the others. Mousse went over to the guard and retrieved the Wing Pack, and began handing out weapons. Soon they were equipped. Ranma checked the map Shizuma had given them. "Everyone know where we're going?" he asked. Several came over, confirmed their route, and stepped back. "Ready?" he asked, licking his lips. There were no negatives, so Ranma took a deep breath, and walked out the door.

Cautiously, he and the others slipped around corners, through shadows, and past "oblivious" guards. They were within twenty yards of the core entrance when a bolt of energy whizzed past the group. They turned around and flattened themselves against the wall, slowly moving backwards towards a cross hallway where they could escape. Several guards, both willingly and unwillingly, fired their plasma beams at the intruders. Ranma clicked the switch on his transmitter. _It's up to you now, Shizuma,_ thought Ranma.

"What I want to know is why my men aren't competent! A simple question, but every last one of my officers failed to catch those interlopers! I'm beginning to think my soldiers are smarter than you are!" Shizuma smiled mentally, savoring the way his subordinates and comrades cringed at his outburst and cowered in fear of his wrath. He glanced down, faking a fuming sigh. He widened his eyes for effect when he saw his transmitter. He slowly picked it up, pressed a switch, and pretended to glare infuriatedly at it. He twisted his mouth in an expression of fury, and slammed the transmitter down on the desk. "Idiots!" he roared. "They've escaped! Don't bother trying to help, you'll just get in the way!"

With that he raced out of the room, and sprinted down hallways until he ran into a group of cofused guards. "S-sir!" said one. "Our guns have been disabled!" Shizuma roared again. "I'm surrounded by idiots!!!" he yelled. "Stay back! I'll take care of them myself!" He shoved the guards out of the way and stormed down the hallway towards the intruders. Rounding a corner, he saw Ranma press his face to a retinal scanner, which promptly opened the doors for him. Shizuma faked a triumphant laugh. "Fine, maggots!" he sneered. "Run to your deaths! I will show you the true meaning of suffering!"

They all took off down the hallway, and Shizuma took up the pursuit. The doors closed off behind him, and they finally reached the core. Shizuma was about to say how tiring it was to be angry all the time, when another voice came from behind him. "Good work, Shizuma!" it said. "Now let's finish them off!" A blonde haired man stepped out from before them. He looked exactly like Mithos, and sounded like him too. Shizuma stared blankly at him, then grinned hugely, closing his eyes. "Good idea, boss!" he said, and punched him in the face as hard as he could. He struck the wall and slumped over. Raine went over to the computer, hacked the computer, turned off the force fields, and backed up the heat vents. Then everyone went out through the exhaust tube, and got out the far side with time to spare.

"Well, that was easy," said Ranma. "Yeah, I mean," said Lloyd, "we should have had to have a really hard boss fight, or have had to had trouble hacking the system, or have had to race against the fires of the exploding tower, or a plot twist that makes up think up a new solution, or something!" Everyone looked at him oddly. "You know, if it was a game, or a movie," said Lloyd sheepishly. Raine sighed. "Sometimes, Lloyd," she said, "things just work." With that the tower exploded, and the resulting time wave sent everyone back in time to the day when Cruxis arrived. The remnants of Cruxis died in an automobile accident when a four man plane suddenly fell out of the sky for no apparent reason. The people in the plane survived with scrapes, but as the pilot put it, "T'aint no reason fur these things t'happen, unless it wert 'n act o'God, er somethin'..."  
And so, with no memories of the world's terrible ordeals (or of that one sexual night), they all lived happily ever after.

THE END


	8. EpilogueREAD THIS!

Epilogue

A few headlines from that week:

STRANGE MEN DIE IN FREAK ACCIDENT, NO BODIES

Pilot claims act of God, but will jury agree?

MAN CLAIMS HE SAW VISION OF BLEAK FUTURE

Man arrested for disturbing the peace, ranting about angels

PURPLE, RED, ARE IN!

Hot babe starts new fashion trend with her boyfriend

THEORISTS CLAIM TIME TRAVEL IS POSSIBLE

Scientists say you can travel through time, are ignored

"Are you sure this is a good idea? They won't remember us! It's no different from asking any other stranger here!"

The man turned back to turn, his hand outstretched to knock on the door. They were huddled under a porch, trying to escape the generous portions of Tokyo soup they were being served. "Well, then, what's the problem?" he said. "If it's no different, than why not start here? At least we _know_ they're good people." The woman sighed, and shook her head, sending droplets of water flying. "I suppose you're right," she conceded. "Of course I'm right!" he said. Just then the door opened, and the man in front of the door turned back around. The others stared fixedly at the door. A man with a thick mustache and long black hair stood framed by the light coming from the house. "May I help you?" he asked.

The man in front of the door shook the mustached man's hand firmly. "Mr. Tendo," said the young man at the door, "I am Lloyd Irving, and these are my friends. May we come in?

To be continued in my next story,

Stuck On You....Earth, That Is


End file.
